If you’ve ever found yourself humming a tune about how much God loves a terrier while folding laundry, you’ve likely been victimized by the genius of the Eugene Levy dog show movie, better known to the world as Best in Show.
It’s been over 25 years since this mockumentary—though director Christopher Guest famously hates that term—hit theaters. Yet, it still feels as fresh and awkward as a first date. Honestly, most comedies from the year 2000 haven't aged well. They rely on cheap gags or dated pop culture references. But Best in Show? It’s different. It’s a character study masquerading as a satire.
I recently rewatched it, and it struck me how much of the "magic" people attribute to luck was actually a result of a very specific, almost masochistic filmmaking process. Everyone knows it’s improvised. But did you know there was no script? Like, actually zero pages of dialogue. Eugene Levy and Christopher Guest wrote a 15-page outline that basically just said "this happens, then this happens." The rest was just a bunch of brilliant Canadians and Americans standing in a room (or a dog ring) trying not to crack each other up.
Why the Eugene Levy dog show movie works when others fail
Most people think the movie is making fun of dog owners. That’s the first thing people get wrong. If you listen to Levy or Guest talk about it, they actually have a weird amount of affection for these people.
Gerry Fleck, played by Levy, is the heart of the whole thing. He’s a guy with literally—not figuratively—two left feet. He’s a bumbling, nervous wreck of a man from Fern City, Florida, who somehow managed to marry Cookie (the legendary Catherine O’Hara), a woman with a "past" that follows them everywhere they go.
The humor doesn't come from them being "stupid." It comes from their intense, narrow-minded focus on their Norwich Terrier, Winky. To them, the Mayflower Dog Show is the Super Bowl, the Oscars, and a religious pilgrimage all rolled into one. When you care that much about something as inherently silly as how a dog walks in a circle, comedy is inevitable.
The Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy Connection
Before they were Johnny and Moira Rose on Schitt's Creek, they were Gerry and Cookie. This was actually the first time they ever played a married couple. They’d been working together since the '70s in SCTV, but Best in Show was the catalyst for that specific "eccentric couple" energy they perfected later.
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Their chemistry is built on a very specific dynamic:
- The Unflappable Wife: Cookie is vivacious and constantly bumping into ex-lovers (like the one who threatens to "punch an eye until it turns to jelly").
- The Insecure Husband: Gerry is just happy to be there, even when he’s sleeping in a hotel storage room because they forgot to pay their credit card bill.
It’s a masterclass in "yes, and" improv. Levy has mentioned in interviews that he wanted Gerry to have slightly larger teeth to give him that "oh, that poor guy" look. It’s those tiny, physical details that make the character feel real instead of like a caricature.
The Secret Ingredient: Real Dogs and Real Stakes
One thing that makes the Eugene Levy dog show movie stand out is the realism of the competition itself. They didn't just hire "movie dogs." Most of the pups you see in the background were actual champion show dogs.
The producers filmed mostly in Vancouver, and they brought in real judges and real breeders to populate the world. The woman playing the judge? Actually a judge. This creates a bizarre tension. You have these world-class improv actors doing ridiculous things, but the environment around them is 100% serious.
The dogs had to be trained to ignore the chaos. The actors had to go through a condensed version of a professional handler’s course. Earlene Luke, the film’s technical advisor, thought it was a "Hollywood fantasy" to expect actors to learn how to handle show dogs in a few weeks. But they did it.
Breaking Down the Competition
The movie follows five main couples/dogs:
- The Flecks (Eugene Levy & Catherine O'Hara): Norwich Terrier named Winky.
- The Swans (Parker Posey & Michael Hitchcock): A high-strung yuppie couple with a Weimaraner that’s depressed because it saw them having sex.
- Harlan Pepper (Christopher Guest): A bloodhound owner who thinks he can speak "dog" and loves naming different types of nuts.
- Scott and Stefan (John Michael Higgins & Michael McKean): A flamboyant couple with a Shih Tzu who are, surprisingly, the most competent handlers in the movie.
- Sherri Ann and Christy (Jennifer Coolidge & Jane Lynch): A trophy wife and a professional handler with a Standard Poodle.
If you look at the structure, it’s basically a sports movie. It has the training montage (sorta), the travel to the "big game," the locker room tension, and the final climax. By the time Winky enters the ring for the final "Best in Show" title, you’re actually rooting for the little guy.
What Most People Miss About the "Mockumentary" Style
Christopher Guest has been very vocal about hating the word "mockumentary." He prefers "documentary-style comedy." Why? Because "mocking" implies a level of cruelty that isn't there.
The Eugene Levy dog show movie influenced everything that came after it. The Office, Parks and Recreation, Modern Family—none of those exist in their current form without Best in Show. It popularized the "talking head" interview and the "zoom-in on a cringing face" shot.
But there’s a key difference. Those shows are scripted. Best in Show was alive. When Fred Willard (playing the clueless commentator Buck Laughlin) says something absolutely unhinged like, "I would think you could put a little hat on her," the reaction from his co-commentator, Jim Piddock, is genuine confusion. Piddock didn't know what Willard was going to say.
The Lasting Legacy of Winky and the Gang
It’s rare for a comedy to spawn a real-world tradition, but Best in Show did just that. It’s widely credited with helping the National Dog Show (the one that airs on Thanksgiving) become the massive TV event it is today. People started watching the real thing because they wanted to see if the "real" people were as weird as the movie characters.
Spoiler: They often are.
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Levy has since said that another collaboration with Guest is unlikely. They did A Mighty Wind (folk music) and For Your Consideration (awards season), but Best in Show remains the peak of their partnership. Levy noted that the format started feeling a bit "cookie-cutter" and that TV eventually "destroyed" the style by overusing it.
That might be true, but it doesn't take away from the original.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Filmmakers
If you’re a fan of the movie or a creator looking to capture that same "lightning in a bottle," here’s what you can actually take away from it:
- Trust the Character, Not the Gag: The funniest moments in Best in Show aren't "jokes." They are reactions. Gerry Fleck isn't trying to be funny; he’s trying to find his dog's favorite toy, "Busy Bee."
- Constraints Breed Creativity: By not having a script, the actors were forced to listen to each other. You can see it in their eyes—they are focused on the other person's mouth, waiting for the next line so they can react.
- Physicality Matters: Whether it’s Levy’s "two left feet" or Parker Posey’s frantic pacing, the characters are defined by how they move through the space.
- The "Straight Man" is Essential: Without the real dogs and the real judges acting as the grounded center, the movie would just be a sketch. You need the "real" world to make the "fake" world funny.
Next time you’re scrolling through a streaming service and see that little Norwich Terrier on the thumbnail, give it another watch. Pay attention to the background actors. Look at the way Eugene Levy tries to defend his wife's honor against a sea of ex-boyfriends. It’s not just a dog show movie; it’s a masterclass in human insecurity and the weird things we do for love—and for a blue ribbon.
To truly appreciate the craft, watch the DVD commentary if you can find it. Hearing Guest and Levy explain how they "found" the story in the editing room (they shot about 60 hours of footage for a 90-minute movie) is a lesson in patience and vision. They didn't know if it was funny until they sat down and started cutting it together. That’s the bravest way to make a movie.
Practical Next Steps
- Watch the "Special Features": If you have the Blu-ray or a digital copy, the deleted scenes are essentially another 30 minutes of top-tier improv that just didn't fit the "plot."
- Research the Breeds: Notice how the personalities of the owners often mirror the stereotypes of the breeds (the high-strung Weimaraner vs. the laid-back Bloodhound).
- Compare to Schitt's Creek: Watch an episode of Schitt's Creek immediately after Best in Show. You’ll see the DNA of Johnny Rose in Gerry Fleck—the eyebrows, the earnestness, and the "good guy" heart.
The Eugene Levy dog show movie is a reminder that you don't need a $200 million budget or a 100-page script to make something that lasts. You just need a few talented people, a very specific subculture, and a terrier with a very busy bee.