Toby Jones, who most probably know from his work on Regular Show and OK KO debuted his first feature length live action film, AJ Goes to the Dog Park at Fantastic Fest yesterday, and the best way to describe it’s the cinematic equivalent to the chilly side of your pillow after a long day. The film has the vibe of a group of friends who got together to make a wholesome family movie and that’s because it was. The film stars Toby’s childhood friend AJ Thompson, who would star in his short films he made growing up as the titular AJ. The three year passion project resulted in a film that was so delightful, I can’t wait to recommend it to friends and families looking for something off the beaten path.
AJ loves his simple life in Fargo, North Dakota and his routines. He loves his buttered toast, falling asleep to youtube videos with his two chihuahuas after a long day and taking his puppies to the local dog park to play. Almost as soon we meet AJ, there’s a recall on his butter, his TV’s youtube app is no longer compatible and when AJ thinks it can’t get any worse, the dog park now has desks and computers and has now been turned into a blog park! Looking to restore order to his world and give his puppies back their park, AJ decides he’ll run for mayor. But in Fargo, North Dakota, he can’t just win the election, he has to complete a series of Herculean tasks that involves: fighting, fishing, scrapping, scraping and sapping in that order to become the mayor and restore order.
Sitting down, I really didn’t know what to expect except dogs – given the title. There were indeed dogs and they were adorable. What transpired is this PG hybrid of peak live-action adult swim and I Think You Should Leave, that’s hilarious as it is wholesome. The humor is a rapid fire mix of cool dad jokes, absurdist sight gags and slapstick, conjuring essentially a live action cartoon onscreen and it completely broke me more than a few times with its rapid fire barbs. That humor is paired with a rather prickly heart and message of not losing focus of the important things in life, as AJ becomes so focused on his tasks he forgets why he was doing them in the first place.
AJ healed my soul a little bit and left me with a warm and fuzzy feeling leaving the theater. AJ Goes to the Dog Park is pure cinematic serotonin and will leave you with a spring in your step and song in your heart, and not enough films can claim that, and dogs.
