The Shaggy D.A.
The Shaggy D.A.
G | 17 December 1976 (USA)
The Shaggy D.A. Trailers

Wilby Daniels, a successful lawyer running for District Attorney, suddenly finds himself being transformed into an English sheepdog. Somehow he has to keep his change a secret and find just what is causing it, all the while eluding the local dog catcher.

Reviews
mike48128

Wiliby Daniels (Dean Jones) grows up to be an attorney and runs for D.A. of a city plagued with petty crime and grand theft auto. In this sequel, the Magical Borgia Ring is stolen by 2 small-time crooks from the museum where is was safely protected in a glass showcase. Soon almost everyone seems to know about the doggy-tranmuto power of the ring, as the Ice Cream Man (Tim Conway) has his sheepdog change several times. It's a mild "werewolf" transformation here and it's very well done and not scary at all. Movie "magic" with a trained dog, Dean Jones in make-up and a talented stuntman in a dog suit. Hans Conried is the eccentric museum curator this time. Suzanne Pleshette is the loyal wife. There's a cute kid, but he doesn't measure up to "Moochie". Co-staring Jo Anne Worley, Dick Van Patten, Vic Tayback, and Keenan Wynn (as the crooked D.A). Pat McCormick plays the bartender. It finishes with a wild car chase and the dog driving the ice cream wagon; somewhat similar to the first film. All the stray dogs are rescued from the dog pound and Wiliby becomes D.A. The dog pound scene might be a bit intense for very small children. George Carlin does some of the doggy voices. Also, there is a surprise "doggy" ending!

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Woodyanders

Amiable lawyer Wilby Daniels (winningly played by Dean Jones) is running for district attorney. Wilby once again gets stricken by the Borgia ring curse which causes him to transform into a large shaggy sheepdog at inopportune moments. His shady and crooked no-count rival John Slade (a marvelously hearty'n'huffy portrayal by Keenan Wynn) tries to get his hands on said ring so he can fix the election. Director Robert Stevenson, working from a blithely silly script by Don Tait, relates the loopy story at a constant zippy pace, maintains a good-natured and innocuous tone throughout, and stages the expected zany slapstick with considerable panache (a wild pie fight and an equally crazy car chase rate as the definite sidesplitting comic highlights). Moreover, the top-rate cast play their parts with infectiously zesty aplomb: Jones is totally engaging in the lead, Tim Conway is in peak goofy form as eager beaver ice cream man Tim (the scenes with Tim trying to convince other people his dog Elwood can talk are hilarious!), Suzanne Pleshette brings some class to her role as Wilby's supportive wife Betty, Wynn grouches it up with growly gusto as a deliciously broad heavy, plus there are neat supporting contributions from Jo Anne Worley as brassy, chipper lunch lady Katrinka Muggelberg, Dick Van Patten as Slade's obsequious partner Raymond, Vic Tayback as fearsome crime boss Eddie Roschak, Richard Bakalyan as bumbling hoodlum Freddie, and John Fiedler as jolly dog catcher Howie Cummings. Buddy Baker's bouncy score, Fred V. Phillips' sharp cinematography, the nifty make-up f/x, and the jaunty theme song all further enhance the sweetly inane charm of this immensely enjoyable hoot.

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disdressed12

while i didn't mind the original The Shaggy Dog(1959),i thought this sequel was not too good.i found it way too silly and absurd,and not realistic.by that,i'm not talking about the premise,a man transforms into a dog.that i can accept as being within the confines of the movie.what i found unrealistic was how most of the characters acted and or reacted.too say there was some overacting going on would be a massive understatement.i also didn't find the characters endearing.i did however find them annoying.and the acting in general was unimpressive.and i found the ending abrupt with no real resolution.i'd say this would be a good family movie,a family comprised of only 3 year olds.maybe they ran out of money or time.whatever.this film had none of the fun or charm of the original.for me,The Shaggy D.A.is a weak 3/10

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MovieKen

Attorney Wilby Daniels (played by Dean Jones) and his wife Betty (played by Suzanne Pleshette) return to their home and find out that it has just been robbed. After the robbers return a second time to take everything else that they had left, Wilby decides to run for District Attorney so he can clean up the town and lock up the criminals for good.Meanwhile, the same robbers who broke into his house have also stolen the famous Borgia ring from the local museum. Unfortunately for Wilby, every time someone reads the inscription, he turns into a sheepdog again. This of course, happens at the most inconvenient times, and the result is a silly, family-friendly comedy.The Shaggy D.A. is a sequel to the 1959 Disney film, the Shaggy Dog. Though it's not quite as funny as the original, there still is a lot to like about this version of the story. The acting is pretty much on par with what we've come to expect from these Disney films, and the characters are pretty interesting, even if they are one-dimensional. The transformation from human to dog doesn't seem to work as well here as it did in the 1959 film, for some reason, but it's fine. If I had a complaint about this movie, it's that it goes a bit long and the same gags are used a few times too many. Other than that, it's nice to find a film that doesn't resort to 7th grade humor that seems to be in every "family" film these days.The bottom line is this is a decent movie if you'd like to have a good time with the kids, but adults will be a bit bored from it fairly soon. It's not as good as some of the other Disney comedies from the 1960s and 1970s.

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