'Marley & Me' (2008)
From That's Not How It Went Down by Lewis Howard & Elliot Fitzpatrick
March 24, 2026 · 59 min · Season 1 · Episode 76
About this episode
The episode discusses the film 'Marley & Me' and its accuracy compared to the original memoir, exploring themes of dog ownership and the challenges of canine-centric films.
They say that a man's best friend is his dog. But surely a filmmaker's best bet is to avoid our four-legged pals. The danger of unpredictability, lack of potty training and a tendency to lean into the sentimentality of pet owning are surely all reasons to steer clear of a canine-centric picture. The challenge of movies like Turner & Hooch, Air Bud and Beethoven all providing evidence that you can't teach an old dog new tricks... but what about a new one? John Grogan's smash-hit memoir "Marley & Me", which spent an incredible 76 weeks on the bestseller chart telling the story of "the worst dog in the world", was hounded down by movie execs and turned into a surprise Christmas hit in 2008. But how accurate to history can a comedy starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston really be? Was Marley actually known as "Clearance Dog"? Were they kicked out of puppy training sessions? And what's the best way to clean a gold necklace?! Join us to find out on That's Not How It Went Down! Subscribe now for further listening: https://tnhiwd.supercast.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
People in this episode
Hosts: Lewis Howard, Elliot Fitzpatrick
Topics covered
- dog ownership
- film adaptation
- sentimentality in movies
- comedy films
- pet training
- memoirs
- movie history
Keywords
- Marley & Me
- Owen Wilson
- Jennifer Aniston
- dog movies
- film reviews
- pet training
- comedy
- memoir adaptation
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Marley & Me, Turner & Hooch, Air Bud, Beethoven
More episodes of That's Not How It Went Down
- 'Quiz Show' (1994) · June 9, 2026 · 1h 1m
- BONUS: 'Gladiator' (2000) · June 2, 2026 · 42 min
- 'Memories of Murder' (2003) · May 26, 2026 · 1h 1m
- 'Battle of the Sexes' (2017) · May 19, 2026 · 60 min
- 'Deepwater Horizon' (2016) · May 12, 2026 · 60 min
- 'Heat' (1995) · May 5, 2026 · 59 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the That's Not How It Went Down podcast page.