Marley & Me

Marriage Movie Marathon 3

The third marriage movie on our marathon list is “Marley & Me” (2009) starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson. Yes, in case you don’t know, this movie is about marriage. Before anything else, I’d like to commend the chemistry between Jen & Owen. It felt real. But what was even more realistic was the movie’s story. To those who expected that this would just be another Romantic Comedy because of the stereotypical Hollywood stars on top bill, or probably a run-of-the-mill Disney-esque Family film because there’s a canine involved, you might have been disappointed. This movie is actually a memoir in motion. Based on an autobiography by John Grogan, "Marley & Me" is a simple straight-to-the-point chronicle of his family life and how their pet Labrador Marley figured out in the entire story.

“Marley & Me” first of all isn’t just about Marley, the dog. This is not like one of those Shaggy, Lassie or Beethoven movies. Marley didn’t save the day. Marley was not kidnapped for his fur. Marley was not made into a lab rat. Marley just happens to be the pet dog of the Grogans, and on many levels a representation of the responsibilities that come along with family and married life. Marley, as a very unruly dog, is symbolical of marriage itself – some days it’s charming but most days it’s such a chore. Just like Marley, marriage is not something you can return if it’s not behaving right. Just like Marley, marriage can sometimes be messy but hey you’ve just hafta pick up the poop and clean up.

The movie resonates a lot to Joseph and me because being dog lovers ourselves and childless to boot, we feel the pain of having to fill those gaps in our fledgling marriage; facing the social pressure to conceive by smiling up front and shedding tears inside our hearts; and living out our daily domestic humdrums and ironing out our various individual differences.

There’s also the issue of careers – giving up our “ambitions” to settle down. Some unmarried people are quick to say that marriage is not supposed to stop you from becoming what you’ve always wanted to be. And I know married people would agree with me that priorities do change. Although we used to have those BIG dreams of climbing our ideal career ladder, our families naturally become more important. When we were single, it would have been much easier to just call it quits when things start becoming unbearable in the office. When we were single, we had more freedom to open the doors of working and studying abroad. We can’t afford to be jobless now but it’s not about being slaves to our obligations and losing ourselves in the process. Marriage is all about becoming unselfish.

We see that in “Marley & Me”. Jen Groger (Jen Aniston) leaves a high-paying newspaper job to take care of the new baby because she doesn’t want to be one of those parents who just see their kids awake for an hour a day. John (Owen Wilson) on the other hand, gives up his dream of being an international reporter in exchange for a more laid-back, closer-to-home job as a columnist. It’s not exactly the hardcore journalism career that he had hoped for but he’s not complaining.

Warning to single people, domesticity can be dull. But personally, I think marriage becomes mundane only when the husband and wife living out that married life are boring people themselves. Good thing, Joseph and I stir each other. To quote my husband, “How will I ever get bored with you? You’re crazy!” Hahaha! Speaking of perking up the partnership, I guess Marley also provided the sugar & spice in their family. Marley kept them running, "literally" and figuratively. So I think it's apt to say that married couples should determine what's the "Marley" in their marriage. It doesn't have to be literally a pet... the Marleys in marriages differ and that all depends on the kind of couple/family that you are or want to be.