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Released by: Shout! Factory
Released on: 6/4/2013
Director: Tony Rogers
Cast: Jason Gann, Adam Zwar, Cindy Waddingham
Year: 2007 and 2009
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The Movie:
Like the title says, this is the original series that inspired the FX show that features one of the hobbits and a man in a dog suit. If you didn't know, an Australian team developed the television show that originally aired in 2007 and 2009 in their home country, before one of the members of the creative team helped develop it for American television. The two versions differ somewhat, but at their core are pretty much the same. Wilfred (Jason Gann) is a dog that only one person can see as a man in a dog suit, one who makes the life of the person who can see him as other than a dog quite nearly a living hell.
Wilfred is a dog, 1/16th dingo, who lives with his owner Sarah (Cindy Waddingham) and he is totally devoted to her. One evening she brings home Adam (Adam Zwar), a man she met at a concert. After spending the night together, Adam walks into a room in her house to find a man in a dog suit, smoking weed and making conversation. This of course seems a little odd to Adam, seeing this man in her house in such a ridiculous costume. That oddness turns into the downright fucked-up when Adam realizes Wilfred is in fact a real dog, and no one else sees him as anything but a real dog other than Adam. But he never seems to question it and he quickly adapts to his newfound reality. The two spend their days smoking dope and swilling beer, watching Wilfred's prized DVD collection and basically getting Adam into trouble with Adam's not-very-likable girlfriend Sarah.
Along the way some other animals make appearances, and as with Wilfred, Adam sees them as humans in animal suits but no one else does. Cats, other dogs, a cockatoo, and even an opossum that pushes his luck with Wilfred (midget!) show up for some good scenes. A visit to Sarah's nudist parents (ewww…) also provides some quality time to meet Wilfred's father and learn a bit of his family story.
The humor is dark, witty, clever, and pretty crude at times. Freely used are the words “fuck†and “cuntâ€, but the latter in that wonderful Australian way that sounds less offensive. Like “I'm gonna miss that cuntâ€, Wilfred says about another dog. Or “I'll kill you, you cunt!†Wilfred screams as he goes for the mailman. Jason Gann steals the show of course with his great character Wilfred, and his making dog mannerisms more like human mannerisms brings about the shows best moments. The two male leads play off each other really well with some great comic timing, resulting in some pretty funny stuff. Sarah's character plays the straight one of the trio, not really having much funny to say, but really effective as a selfish, entitled little brat who walks all over Adam and of course blames him for every stupid thing he does because she just sees Wilfred as a dog.
The two seasons were filmed a few years apart and season two takes the show in a different direction than the first season. In t he first season, Wilfred's appearance in human form is hinted as being some sort of psychotic delusion Adam is having as a result of some sort of tragedy he suffered. Clues are here and there that something bigger than it appears is going on, but nothing ever develops. Then in the second season, the activities in the last episode of season one are never addressed or mentioned in any form (and it's a pretty big thing to have happened and not continue working with, story-wise). The story seems to be less about what the heck Wilfred is and why Adam can only see him and more about going for the joke.
The second season is also a lot cruder than the first, moving into the realm of full frontal nudity and a pretty heavy sex scene. Wilfred's having sex with his teddy bear and other animals is a lot more exaggerated and there's even some male-on-male dog action. None of these things make the second season any less entertaining, quite the contrary, but the show seems noticeably different between the two seasons. And the finale leaves a bit of a “wha--?†moment that is a bit of a cop-out it seems. Maybe they had some plans for the show but when it got optioned in the U.S. perhaps they decided to close it up and work on their story with FX. At any rate, despite the somewhat disappointing end of the show, all in all it's well worth checking out.
Video/Audio/Extras:
The television show is presented with an aspect of 16:9 anamorphic widescreen. Having been shot on film, grain is present and it helps with the dark mood of the show. Colors look nice, detail is there, and black levels look fine. No compression issues were noted, nor any other authoring issues. The audio is a 2.0 Dolby Digital track (no subtitles) that does its job with no issues to report. Things sound balanced and easy to understand. Nothing noteworthy though.
Extras wise, there's a bit to be checked out. Least important is a still gallery with every episode, four per disc (four disc set) and each disc has a play all option so you can watch four shows without a stop. Disc one has some behind the scenes short clips, lasting about a total of 3 minutes, plus a trailer for the show. Disc two has a couple of “Crew Montagesâ€, equaling around eight minutes and is behind-the-scenes stuff. Disc three has no extras and disc four has a 28-minute “Making ofâ€, and a seven-minute thing called “Wilfred Bites†of the two leads playing off each other. Last on the disc is six minutes worth of bloopers and outtakes. Also, an 8-page episode guide is included with photos and synopses of all 16 episodes.
The Final Word:
Entertaining left-of-center comedy with an original concept and great execution. The DVD package is a good one and the set comes recommended.
