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Welcome back to Simple Man Entertainment today. I have written about a few movies here, and I have said repeatedly that I would that I would write about Clint Eastwood’s “Gran Torino”. Well I finally got to see this movie over the weekend and I wish I had seen it a lot sooner. Anyway here is my long awaited post on “Gran Torino”.

Written by Nick Schenk and Dave Johannson and was released in January of 2009. “Gran Torino” opened at the box office to wide critical acclaim, and took the lead in box office earnings for that week. “Gran Torino” continued to claim excellent box office earnings for several weeks too.

“Gran Torino” is a story about a former Korean War veteran and retired auto worker named Walt Kowalski (Clint Eastwood). The film begins with the funeral of Walt’s wife who appears to be the only person he ever cared about. It is immediately apparent that Walt is not a very happy person with himself, his family, and the world in general.

It is also evident that Walt has no respect for anybody either. Father Janovich (Christopher Carley) the parish priest who had befriended Walt’s wife and promised her to look after Walt is a major sourced of Walt’s disrespect. Walt’s family receives a large helping of disrespect from Walt also. Walt’s new neighbors receive the greatest amount of Walts disrespect as well as his hatred because of their ethnicity.

Walt Kowalski’s neighbors are also the catalysts for Kowalski’s actions from near the beginning of this story to its climactic unexpected end. Walt’s new neighbors are tribal Hmong people from the hills of Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. When you add this to Walts nightmare experiences during the Korean War they are the obvious targets for this troubled man to vent his anger and hate upon.

It also doesn’t help their relationship with Walt when the oldest son of Walt’s neighbors Thao (Bee Vang) attempts to steal Walt’s prized possession his 1972 Ford Gran Torino. Unfortunately for Thao, he was forced to try to steal the car by his cousin who leads the local Hmong gang because he wants Thao initiated into the gang. I say unfortunately because Walt catches Thao in the act.

This one single act sets the stage for everything else that happens in the movie. Thaos family forces him to apologize and serve Walt for a period of time as a form of penance for the attempted theft. During the course of events that surround Walt during this time he is finally befriended by Thaos sister Sue (Ahney Her).

Apparently Thaos gangster cousin is not satisfied with Thaos fumbled attempt at stealing the Gran Torino and attempts to force Thao to try again. In the struggle that ensues between Thao and his family against the gang, their fight spills over into Walt’s yard and these wannabe tough guys meet Walt and his M1 Garand rifle up close and personal.

After this confrontation Walt’s neighborhood, which is mostly ethnic Hmong people see Walt as the Neighborhood hero, a position that Walt is unwilling to accept. In apparent Walt Kowalski fashion he ultimately accepts an invitation to dinner at his neighbors and becomes a respected man and potential friend.

He also befriends Thao at this time and teaches him some skills that he can use to find a job. Thao is a willing student and learns the lessons Walt teaches him in handling tools as well as the lessons he teaches Thao in order to man him up. However Walts new found friendships with his neighbors are disrupted once again by the local Hmong gang.

These gangsters jump Thao after work, shoot up his house in a drive-by, and seriously beat up Sue. Walt becomes so enraged by all of this happening in his neighborhood and to his friends, so he decides to take matters into his own hands. In typical Eastwood tough guy fashion Walt finally puts an end to the gang problem in his neighborhood.

However I will not divulge the end of this epic Clint Eastwood vehicle, but I will tell you that it is not the ending one would expect from an Eastwood film. The ending is extremely powerful and poignant though. I would definitely recommend this movie as a must see to all of you. It might even be able to teach your children a valuable lesson about becoming involved with gangs.

I hope you all have enjoyed this post and that you also enjoy the trailer as well. That is all I have for you today but I will be back again very soon CIAO4NOW!!!!!

As we all know Wednesday night was the first night of the competition of the long awaited season five of So You Think You Can Dance. Ten couples got the chance to dance to routines from some of dances greatest choreographers, and show us the fans and viewers what they can do. During the first show of the season there were many memorable performances and there were also a couple that were not so memorable.

Today we are going to go over the results from last nights show and talk about who danced for their lives and who ultimately got the axe and went home. As I said there were a lot of great dances performed Wednesday and a couple not so great, which made the job for the Judges of the show a little difficult. In the end I think the judges made the right decision and cut the right couple, although I think the female dancer that was cut was cut because of the poor performance of her partner.

The judges for this weeks show were Nigel Lythgoe, and Mary Murphy who are the permanent judges and guest judge Adam Shankman who is a world renowned choreographer and film producer. During their critique on Wednesday night’s dance routines I would have to say that they were very accurate in their professional opinions of each couple. I would also have to say that I think they did a great job last night when they picked the three couples who would dance for their lives singly in their own styles.

After all ten couples in three groups had been brought out on stage and seven of them had been pronounced safe we found out which ones were not. The three couples who were picked to dance for their lives based on Wednesday’s performance were Tony and Paris who were judged on their performance of a Hip Hop routine, Vitolio and Asuka who performed a Broadway routine, and Karla and Jonathan who performed a Cha Cha routine.

Paris Torres was the first to dance for her life and did so in the contemporary style of dance. While she is obviously a talented dancer I think that she did not give the judges or the audience her best performance.

Tony Bellissimo who is Paris’s partner danced in the second position in his chosen style which is Hip Hop. However I would have to say that is performance like the Wednesday performance left something to be desired.

Asuka Kondoh danced third in the group and did so in the Latin style which is her specialty. While Asukas performance was last night was great to watch she also did not perform this dance at her best.

Vitolio Jeune who is Asukas partner danced fourth in the contemporary style. I think his performance was excellent, but it could have had just a little bit more of his personality injected into his performance.

Karla Radomski danced for her life in the fifth position also in the Contemporary style. Karla is another very talented dancer, but last night her performance while better than Paris’s was still weak.

The last person to dance and in the sixth position was Jonathan Platero. Jonathan performed his routine in the Salsa style. His technique was great, but there was none of himself in the routine, but as I said he was great technically.

After these six dancers had performed for the judges it was time for them to go back stage and deliberate. In the judges absence we were treated to a performance by teen sensation Sean Kingston. As far as my critique of his performance goes, I don’t think he has the greatest voice and I don’t think his dancers would make the cut in So You Think You Can Dance either. Mercifully this performance was short and we got to the commercial break safely.

After the commercial break the judges were back and it was time for their critique of singles dance routines performed last night. While everyone waited with baited breath for the critiques to be over I had already pretty much figured out who was going and who was staying on the men’s side. It was the women’s side that I was not to sure about, but I was not surprised by the judge’s decision either. At the end of it all Asuka, Karla, Vitolio, and Jonathan were moving on to next week and Paris and Tony were going home. In Paris’s defense I will have to tell you that I think Tony’s Wednesday night performance may have helped to end the contest for Paris.

Well that is it for this weeks posts on So You Think You Can Dance, but we will be back again next week to bring you more on this awesome show. By the way enjoy this video it was my favorite performance on Wednesday night a Jazz routine with Evan and Randi, and as hot a routine as it was you would have never guessed that Randi is married. Have a wonderful weekend my friends CIAO4NOW!!!!!

Welcome back to Simple Man Entertainment. I hope you all got a chance to watch So You Think You Can Dance last night. If you didn't, you missed an excellent show.

Since I've watched every single season of So You Think You Can Dance from the beginning, I've definitely been spoiled by great dancing. Each show has been better than the last, and at the beginning of each season I always wonder will this new season keep up with the last. Well, the dancers didn't disappoint me last night!

The show started out with a Hip Hop routine performed by Jeanine and Phillip, and it was a show starter to be sure. In the words of judge Adam, it was "un-freakin' real," and I'd have to agree. I'm a huge fan of Napoleon and Tabitha's choreography in the first place, and the story that was danced was beautiful. I always look for dancing that jumps off my screen and really touches my emotions - this one did it.

Next came Asuka and Vitolio. I was excited when I saw that they would be performing Broadway, choreographed by Tyce Diorio. Unfortunately the excitement was unwarranted. The performance was blasé. No, it wasn't bad, but it didn't grab me at all. I really think that for these two, their staid backgrounds held them back, not allowing them to let their personalities shine through their dancing. Anything would have been hard put to follow Jeanine and Phillip, but this didn't even come close. I think these two have a good chance of being in the bottom three tonight.

Karla and Jonathan were up next, and I was hoping the Cha Cha would bring the show back, but it wasn't to be. This dance was merely okay in my book. There were some good tricks, but the basics weren't so great. With some of the great performances on the show, I think this number really just got lost. It didn't have what it took to really compete.

With a jazz routine, once again choreographed by Tyce Diorio, Randi and Evan were up. I loved this routine. They brought the show back with a routine that was smokin' hot, even though Randi is a married woman. Lol. The lifts were great, the chemistry was there, and I think this routine set Evan up to go a long way in this competition.

Paris and Tony then were out on the floor doing another Hip Hop routine. Sorry, but they blew it. This routine was supposed to be rough and raw and it just wasn't there. This was Tony's genre, so what was going on here? He wasn't even hitting the moves, and he should have been. These two I believe are seriously are in danger of being in the bottom three and maybe even going home tonight.

Last year I loved the Bollywood routine performed by Katie and Joshua. This year they brought the cultural dance back, and Caitlin and Jason would perform it. They had a lot to live up to. The routine was a tough one and even the choreographer stated that it may have included too much and been too tough for week one. Did Caitlin and Jason live up to last year's Bollywood performance? No, I don't think so, but I have to say these two put everything they had into it. It was a respectable performance and they left it all out on the floor.

When Janette and Brandon walked out to do a Foxtrot, I almost groaned. This is a tough piece to do after the high energy of a Bollywood routine. However, I feel the couple really pulled this off. It was interesting, graceful, and well performed. Undoubtedly the best Foxtrot I've ever seen on the show. No, it didn't make my top three, but definitely one of the better performances of the night.

Doing a Wade Robson routine, Ashley and Kupono came out to perform jazz. The routine was definitely unique, as they portrayed crash test dummies throughout the routine. They did a great job at staying in the character that they were given to play. At the end of the day though, I don't think this routine was enough to become a favorite compared to many of the incredible routines performed throughout the show.

Out to save the day came Melissa and Ade, performing a Mandy Moore contemporary piece. I had really never noticed either of these dancers before this point. Melissa happens to be the oldest dancer this year, and last year it was the oldest dancer that got cut first. I don't think that will be happening this year. The routine was incredible. The dancing was strong and graceful by both of them, and it reached out and grabbed your heart. It actually made Adam Shankman tear up. These are two who I think will go a long way in this competition if they keep up this level of performance.

Last, but not least, Kayla and Max hit the stage. From the start Kayla has been a favorite for me, so I'd been waiting all night to see her take the stage. I wasn't disappointed with the Samba they performed. This was one of the night's best routines, and even though Kayla had never danced ballroom in her life, she did it brilliantly. The routine brought screams from Mary Murphy and raving reviews from Adam and Nigel. It wasn't hard to see why. It was sexy, sultry, earthy, and just incredibly HOT! What a way to end the night.

The first top 20 show was sensational. We saw some good dancing, some who needed a bit of improvement, and then some dancing that was absolutely incredible. This promises to be a great season, and from here it can only get better.

Stay tuned tomorrow morning for Tim's review of tonight's results show. We'll let you know who landed in the bottom three couples, the two that get cut, and whether we think this was the right choice.

Until next time….let me leave you with one thought on dance that I believe pertains to the show…"Dancing with the feet is one thing, but dancing with the heart is another." ~ Unknown

P.S. Videos of my favorite performances from last night are below. Enjoy!

So You Think You Can Dance is perhaps the greatest reality TV show I have ever seen. It is has consistently beaten shows like American Idol and Dancing With the Stars in the ratings game as well as any other reality TV program out there. I have to tell you guys that I am seriously hooked on this show and I cannot wait to start blogging on it weekly. As you all know Joy who co-writes with me on a couple of blogs also wrote yesterday’s introduction to the show on Simple Man Entertainment and now I’m going to introduce you to this seasons dancers.

Here are your top 10 Girls:

1) Randi Evans: Randi age 23 is from Orem, Utah and attends Utah Valley University and is majoring in elementary education. Randi specializes in Jazz dance.
2) Karla Garcia: Karla age 23 is from Oxon Hill, Maryland. A graduate of New York University. Karla has also performed on Broadway in “Hot Feet”, danced in the Radio City Christmas Spectacular ensemble, and toured with “Wicked”. Karla specializes in both Jazz and Contemporary dance.
3) Caitlin Kinney: Caitlin age 21 is from Annapolis, Maryland. Caitlin graduated the Baltimore School of Arts and danced at the North Carolina dance Theater as an apprentice. Caitlin specializes in Contemporary dance.
4) Asuka Kondoh: Asuka age 25 is from San Francisco, California. Asuka graduated from the University of California at Irvine. Asuka is also a professional ballroom instructor. Asuka specializes in Latin Ballroom dance.
5) Janette Manrara: Janette age 25 is from Miami, Florida. She is currently attending Florida State University. She has studied Ballroom, Ballet, Pointe, Jazz, and Hip Hop. Janette specializes in Salsa dance.
6) Jeanine Mason: Jeanine age 18 is from Miami, Florida. Jeanine plans to attend the University of California. She has studied Ballet, Lyrical, Jazz, Hip Hop, Modern, and Contemporary dance styles. Jeanine specializes in Contemporary dance.
7) Kayla Radomski: Kayla age 18 is from Aurora, Colorado. Jeanine is a lifetime dancer as well as an actress and singer. Jeanine specializes in Jazz and Contemporary dance.
8) Melissa Sandvig: Melissa age 29 is from Los Alamitos, California. Melissa has danced with the Milwaukee Ballet Company, LA Opera, Long Beach Ballet, and Helios Dance Theater. Melissa specializes in Ballet dance.
9) Paris Torres: Paris age 19 is from Issaquah, Washington. A professional dance teacher, she was also a Miss Washington Teen pageant winner. Paris specializes in Contemporary dance.
10) Ashley Valerio: Ashley age 22 is from Mesa, Arizona. A lifetime dancer and performer. Ashley specializes in Contemporary dance.

Here are your top 10 guys:

1) Kupono Aweau: Kupono age 23 is from Honolulu, Hawaii. Kupono is a graduate of the Kamehameha Schools. Kupono specializes in Lyrical and Contemporary dance.
2) Tony Bellissimo: Tony age 20 is from Buffalo, New York. A lifetime dancer he also writes short stories and poems. Tony specializes in Hip Hop dance.
3) Brandon Bryant: Brandon age 19 is from Miami, Florida. Brandon currently attends Miami Dade College. Brandon specializes in Contemporary dance.
4) Phillip Chbeeb: Phillip age 20 is from Houston, Texas. Phillip Attends Loyola Marymount University as an engineering physics Major. Phillip also founded the Marvelous Motion Studio in Houston Texas. Phillip specializes in Popping dance.
5) Jason Glover: Jason age 21 is from Fresno, California. Jason has studied both Tap and Hip Hop and has also tapped on stage with Gregory Hines. Jason specializes in Lyrical and Contemporary dance.
6) Vitolio Jeune: Vitolio age 26 is from Petionville, Haiti. Vitolio graduated from Florida’s New World School of the Arts. Vitolio specializes in Contemporary dance.
7) Max Kapitannikov: Max age 26 is from Moscow, Russia. Max is a lifetime dancer whose family is steeped in dancing tradition and his mother teaches Ballet. Max also enjoys sculpting and playing guitar. Max specializes in Latin Ballroom dance.
8) Evan Kasprzak: Evan age 21 is from West Bloomfield, Michigan. Max attends Illinois Wesleyan University. Max specializes in Broadway dance.
9) Ade Obayomi: Ade age 20 is from Chandler, Arizona. Ade is currently attending Chapman University. Ade has performed at Radio City Music Hall. Ade specializes in Contemporary dance.
10) Jonathan Platero: Jonathan age 21 is from Sanford, Florida. Jonathan was a world salsa finalist in 2006-2007 and performed as a dancer in High School Musical. Jonathan specializes in Salsa dance.

There you have it my friends the top 20 dancers for this seasons So You Think You Can Dance. The competition starts tomorrow or Wednesday for those of you 2 hours ahead of me or more. I hope you enjoy the show and give us feedback on what you think about the show. There will be two posts for this show on here per week one on Thursday for the Wednesday show, and on Friday for the Thursday show.

I hope you all have a good evening and a wonderful Wednesday CIAO4NOW!!!!!

Welcome to Simple Man Entertainment. Today I want to introduce to you a great show - So You Think You Can Dance. Maybe you are already a fan, or maybe you have never seen the show before. If you haven't seen the show, you're definitely missing out!

Here at Simple Man Entertainment we believe in supplying you with information on all kinds of entertainment. I for one am a big proponent of the arts and we have decided to bring a little art into your life in the form of dance, by blogging on this show each week.

Currently the show's 5th season is playing. You can find it on FOX, from 7pm-9pm on Wednesdays and 8pm-9pm on Thursdays.

This show is basically a dance reality show, but it is definitely far different than most of the reality shows that you see on TV. If you like American Idol, this is so much better. In fact, it has beat out the ratings for American Idol for the past couple of years. The show was created by Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, who are both from the UK.

Why was the show even created? Well, a lot of this had to do with a vision that Nigel Lythgoe had - a vision to bring back dance to America. Although dance used to be very popular, true dance, as an art, had all but died in American culture. However, since the show's creation it has begun to bring back dance in American in a huge way. This is one of the reasons we feel this show is worth blogging about.

Basically the goal of the show is to find "America's Favorite Dancer." They go out to major cities, hold auditions, and a limited number of those who audition go on to the next level, which is a several day event that takes place in Las Vegas. Then the show picks 20 out of all those that go to Vegas (usually close to 200 end up in Vegas). When the top 20 is picked (10 girls and 10 guys) the main part of the show begins.

Each week couples dance together. The couples are chosen randomly and the dances are also given to them at random. They perform, and for the first few weeks, the judges critique them and eliminate one guy and one girl on the Thursday night show. This takes place until the top 10, when America alone gets to vote on the contestants. The guy and girl with the least votes go home. This takes place until the finale, which is the final four, when the top dancer is finally revealed.

The show celebrates creativity, music, and of course the art of dance. Many new types of dance have been introduced on the show. Do you know what Bollywood dancing is? It's been done on the show. Heard of Crumping? It's been made popular on the show.

The incredible thing is that the top 20 is comprised of dancers from all different styles. There are salsa dancers, hip hop dancers, street dancers, contemporary dancers, ballet dancers, poppers, and more.

That being said, our next post will introduce to you the top 20 that will be competing for the title of "America's Top Dancer" on So You Think You Can Dance this year.

P.S. Here are a couple GREAT videos from last years season to give you a bit of a taste...Enjoy!!!

Just a couple weeks ago the movie "Bedtime Stories" was released on DVD. Being an Adam Sandler fan, my family just had to see this movie so it became our choice for family night last week. So, I thought I'd share with you a bit about the movie and my thoughts about it here to all you readers of Simple Man Entertainment.

Who's Who?
Let's start out by letting you know who the big names were in the movie. Well, as was mentioned, Adam Sandler was the leading man, playing the part of Skeeter Bronson (yeah weird name). Keri Russell was another big name, playing Jill (the person Skeeter eventually gets together with) and Courteney Cox played Skeeter's sister, Wendy. The kids in the movie were played by Jonathan Morgan Heit as Patrick and Laura Ann Kesling as Bobbi. A few other names you may recognize include Guy Pearce, Russell Brand, Richard Griffiths, and Teresa Palmer.

Kid Rating:
While often Adam Sandler really isn't in "kid friendly" movies, this one definitely is one to show the kiddies. Released by Disney, you don't have to worry about showing this one to the kids. The only thing I found is that the kids took a bit to get into the movie. The first 5-10 minutes didn't really hold their attention, but after that they were hooked.

The Story Line:
The story centers around Skeeter (played by Sandler) although it starts out when he is a child. His father owns a small motel and has to sell it to Barry Nottingham (played by Griffiths). Nottingham promises that later in life he'll make Skeeter the manager of the hotel. Well, Skeeter only ends up being the janitor and maintenance guy in the big hotel, but he dreams of someday being the manager. As the story progresses, Skeeter's sister asks him to watch her kids as she goes off to look for another job, since the school she is principal of is being closed down. Helping out Skeeter with their care is a teacher from the same school, Jill. At first Skeeter doesn't get along well with the children or with Jill. At the same time Nottingham (owner of the big hotel) decides he is going to start a new project and decides to make Kendall, who is to be his future son in law, the manager of the huge hotel.

As Skeeter takes care of the kids, he begins to win them over with the bedtime stories he tells them. The only thing is, the stories seem to be coming true in his life. Eventually even Jill begins to warm up to him. When Skeeter realizes that the dreams are coming true, he works to make the bedtime stories end up in ways that will help him get his dream of becoming a manager of the hotel. The only thing is, it appears that it's only what the kids say in the stories that actually comes true, which he'll learn the hard way.

My Thoughts:
So, about my thoughts. I really thought this was a good family movie. Do I plan on watching it again? No. It was good once, but not a family classic we'll watch again. I must say it had a lot of funny moments, but that's definitely to be expected with Adam Sandler playing the leading man. If you are looking for a movie for the family that is light and funny, this is a good pick. There's plenty of laughs, quite a bit of action, and the story plot is pretty decent, although a bit on the predicable side.

This is a movie I'd recommend if you have kids. It won't get a five star rating from me, but I'll have to give it a nice four star rating. So, pop some popcorn, load up on candy, and enjoy a night with the family with "Bedtime Stories."

This movie was first released in theaters back on Christmas Day 2008. However, it just came out on DVD a couple weeks ago, and I took the time to watch it this weekend with my significant other. I've been wanting to see this movie since December, and was excited about seeing it. What did I think? Well, let me share my review of Marley & Me for you right here at Simple Man Entertainment.

Who's Who?
First of all, if you haven’t seen the movie, you are probably wondering who all is in the movie. Well, there are several of my favorite names in this flick. Owen Wilson played the leading man as John Grogan, and Jennifer Aniston played his wife - aptly named Jennifer Grogan. Eric Dane (you may remember him from Grey's Anatomy and X-Men) plays twisted best friend to John Grogan. Another person you may recognize is Alan Arkin, playing Arnie Klein, who happens to be Grogan's editor. It's a good cast, and I must say that Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston play off each other well.

Kid Rating:
If you have kids and you are like me, you may be wondering if this is one to show the kiddies on family night. Well, it's rated PG, and I think it's a pretty kid friendly movie. The only thing is that it does get pretty sad at the end, so you need to consider whether or not your kids are old enough to handle this. Otherwise I think it is an excellent family friendly movie.

The Story Line:
The story line of Marley & Me is based around John and Jennifer Grogan, who are both in the writing biz. They decide to move to Florida to pursue their life goals (and to get away from the blizzard conditions that affected their wedding night). Jennifer always seems to have her life planned out in steps and John becomes concerned that children are the next step. He goes to his "faithful" friend (played by Eric Dane) for advice and decides a puppy is a great idea. Jennifer picks the "runt" of the litter and they get him for a deal, calling him the "Clearance Puppy" although he later gets the name "Marley" from a Bob Marley song.

Now this is one puppy that pulls every bad puppy trick in the book. Nothing is safe from Marley, and amazingly this little "runt" grows to be a 100+ pound dog (although I think the dog looks even closer to 150 than 100 pounds). Even as a big dog he is full of the puppy energy. Although Marley never really learns discipline, despite attending and then being kicked out of Obedience School, he becomes a part of the family. He is there for the couple when they deal with their 1st miscarriage, he's there for their first baby boy, an unplanned second baby boy, and then later the birth of their little girl. As they grow through life, job changes, the challenges of kids, and even difficulties in their marriage, Marley is always there.

In the end, after they move to Philadelphia, Marley begins to show signs of age. Then he has a medical emergency where his stomach twists. Although the vet was able to help the first time that happened, several months later the problem occurred again and nothing could be done, leading to the loss of the family pet. This was devastating to the entire family, as they felt the loss of Marley, who was essentially a part of their family.

My Thoughts:
So, what were my thoughts about Marley & Me? Well, this movie was definitely an emotional roller coaster. There were so many parts where I was laughing so hard at the antics that Marley pulled as a puppy, and when he grew up. Then there were the parts that brought tears to my eyes, such as when Marley comforts Jennifer when she loses her first baby. Of course the end I thought was horrible, as Marley died and the family mourned him. I was tearing up the whole way.

Although it brought laughter and tears, I thought the movie was excellent. Although it ended more serious than I though it would, it truly was a picture of how a family pet can so become a part of your life - sharing the joys, the tears, the good times, and the bad times with you. It wasn't your classic "Lassie" movie, but more of a movie that showed the growth of a family and the importance of their dog as they went through various stages of their life. After all, if you have owned a pet yourself, you know that as that pet goes with you through life's ups and downs, the pet becomes a true member of the family.

Marley & Me definitely comes recommended by me! Of course I do recommend you have a few tissues nearby. You'll need them to dry the tears of laughter and to wipe your eyes through the sad parts (especially if you have your own pet).