LOS ANGELES, Sept. 19, 2000 — The stage was set, the lights were blazing and the red carpet was laid out for what was to be the premiere of the “best” movie.
Stars such as Elizabeth Hurley, Rob Reiner, Jamie Lee Curtis, Harold Ramis and Janet Leigh were seen mingling about the Directors Guild Of America in anticipation.
By 6 p.m., the wait was over. The one man responsible walked toward his adoring crowd. His name: Christopher Guest. His project: “Best in Show,” a new mockumentary from the man who last left audiences rolling in their seats with “Waiting for Guffman.”
The movie, completely improvised but conceptualized by Guest and Eugene Levy, is about dogs, their eccentric owners and those prestigious canine shows we see occasionally on ESPN. The film also stars Jennifer Coolidge, Catherine O’Hara, Michael McKean, Fred Willard, John Michael Higgins, Mike Hitchcock, Jim Piddock, Larry Miller, Don Lake, Parker Posey and Jane Lynch.
“It was the most fun I’ve ever had,” said O’Hara, who also had a role in “Guffman.”
“Parker (Posey) and I really got to create our own characters and their background, which is so rare,” said Hitchcock.
“These dog owners really take the show seriously. They hate to lose. Some of the real owners in the movie forgot we were shooting a movie and were upset when their dogs lost,” Lynch said with a smirk.
According to everyone in the movie, if Academy Awards were to be given out today, the dogs of the film would take the prize.
“Best in Show” opens Sept. 29.
