Sun Dogs (2017 film)

Ned Chipley (Angarano) is a mentally handicapped individual who lives with his mother Rose (Janney) and his stepfather Bob Garrity (O'Neill). Chipley, whose birthday is on September 11, is tempted by the 9/11 attacks to enlist. However, he is politely rejected, with the marines listed at the station always feeling sorry for him. Ned, as a result of this, cancels his birthday dinner and goes to work at the casino. Bob is in the middle of a lawsuit against his truck-driving company for his back injuries, much to the consternation of Rose, who is frustrated with constantly having to stay in the same place, but stays strong for Ned, nevertheless.

In Ned's latest attempt to enlist, Staff Sergeant Jenkins (Xzibit) politely lies to Ned about a fictitious unit known as "Sun Dogs" which keep watch over sleeper cells of Al-Qaeda in the United States after hearing about Ned's desire to "save lives". Ned takes this seriously and proceeds to print out note cards which he passes, spreading the message of the sleeper cells to everyone he meets, informing them to "stay vigilant". Ned also encourages Rose to follow her dreams of being an EMT and move to New York City. Rose, who realizes that she has what it takes and has been using Ned as an excuse to stay behind, agrees to do so. Bob discovers that there is a potential gold mine in the area near his home but fears doing physical activity out of fear of losing the lawsuit.

At the casino, Ned approaches Tally Petersen (Benoist), a woman constantly thrown out for flirting with the people inside and alerts her to the sleeper cells in the United States. Tally, mistakenly believing Ned to be a marine, becomes tempted to help with the investigation as she is struggling financially and faces the worst-case scenario of being evicted from the trailer park she lives in. However, she and Ned become close when they go on stakeouts after Ned mistakenly believes his boss, Sameer Udday, to be an agent working for Al-Qaeda.

Ned and Tally go on multiple stakeouts and trail Udday everywhere he goes, filming him and his activities. Tally, who has a gift in filmmaking, makes and edits videos which they submit as "evidence" to Jenkins. The investigation continues until it ultimately leads to the two of them sneaking back into the casino. When caught, Tally is almost arrested for trespassing until Ned uses his strength acquired from training for the Marines to choke the security guard unconscious. This leads to Ned being fired and Bob having to bail Ned out of jail. Tally is grateful to Ned and becomes even more convinced that he is a Marine.

As Thanksgiving approaches, Ned invites Tally over to his house but Tally is initially hesitant as she has unsuccessfully tried flirting with Bob before to get a ride back to her trailer. When it starts storming, Ned and Tally take shelter indoors where Tally reveals that her mother had always wanted to take her to San Francisco but they couldn't afford to move there due to them living paycheck to paycheck. As a result, she had low self esteem and wrote that she would walk to the train station and if no one said hello to her, she would kill herself (which she ended up doing). Tally claims that Ned is a caring person and tearfully states that Ned would've said hello to her, before realizing that she is in love with him, ultimately deciding to have dinner with him on Thanksgiving.

At Thanksgiving, Tally has dinner with the Chipleys, much to the consternation of Bob. Rose, upon learning of Tally's filmmaking talents, suggests that she apply to film school. However, seeing that she still believes that Ned is a Marine and that Tally genuinely cares for Ned, she decides not to let spill his secret right away. Later, Bob is shocked that Rose has accepted a job as an EMT in New York City. Rose admits that it was time for her to find her calling, promising to visit. However, Bob is still depressed as he is waiting on the lawsuit to succeed. Rose insists that she can't wait forever and kisses Bob goodbye before leaving for New York to follow her dreams.

When Tally receives a transcript of the video recording of Udday's conversation after the two mistakenly believe that there was going to be a second attack by Al-Qaeda, Tally goes to visit Ned's house to find Bob there. Bob, tired of the charade that Rose let go on, lets Tally know the truth about Ned. Tally, in denial, refuses to believe it but when she finally goes into Ned's room, the truth becomes apparent that he is not a Marine, breaking her heart. Tally lashes out at Ned for deceiving her and leaves him heartbroken, hinting that Ned had feelings for Tally as well.

Ned informs Jenkins that he resigns, alarming him. Bob, seeing that Ned's depression is gradually getting worse as he is refusing to even shave and is continually wearing the Cougar mascot head from high school, calls Jenkins to talk some sense into Ned. When Jenkins arrives, he apologizes to Ned for lying to him and lets him know the truth about why he never allowed him to enlist. He then bids Ned farewell and leaves, telling him that he should find his purpose in life. Ned receives postcards from his mother and Tally, who wrote to apologize for lashing out at him. She reveals that she submitted the videos from the stakeout to a film school in San Francisco and got accepted there, inspired by Ned's optimism and brave spirit, reaffirming her love for him.

Bob buys a metal detector using eBay and he and Ned search for the gold mine in the property near their house. They go at night so as to avoid being seen doing physical activity. Bob ultimately decides to make a decision regarding dropping the lawsuit as he knew he would lose anyway. He then gives fatherly advice to Ned, telling him that he admires Ned for taking risks, but he should know his limits and avoid setting unrealistic goals for himself, telling him that he often tends to go astray when thinking about what he wants in life.

Ned, remembering what Tally had said to him about people committing suicide from low self-esteem and that if they could be saved then in 50 years it would even out 9/11, takes into account her conservative math. Inspired by the story of her mother's suicide, Ned makes a collection of notecards with the phrase "HELLO, HOW ARE YOU DOING?" and, moving to San Francisco to be with Tally, heads to the Golden Gate Bridge and passes one of the note cards to a woman who is evidently contemplating suicide.

• Michael Angarano as Ned Chipley
• Melissa Benoist as Tally Petersen
• Alvin "Xzibit" Joiner as Master Sgt. Jenkins
• Allison Janney as Rose Chipley
• Ed O'Neill as Bob Garrity
• Jennifer Morrison as Marie
• Eric Christian Olsen as Thad
• J. R. Ramirez as Staff Sgt. Kendrick

The film premiered LA Film Festival on June 18, 2017. The film was also featured in the 2017 Austin Film Festival, SCAD Savannah Film Festival, Los Cabos International Film Festival, Cucalorus Film Festival, and the 2018 Mammoth Film Festival.[4]

The film won three awards at the 2018 Mammoth Film Festival, Best Actor for Michael Angarano, Best Picture, and the Grandy Jury Award. The film also won Best Narrative Feature at the 2017 SCAD Savannah Film Festival.[5]

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 80% based on five reviews. Sheri Linden from The Hollywood Reporter wrote: "Morrison balances her affection for all the characters with droll naturalism and an assured visual style."[6]

Renee Schonfeld from Common Sense Media gave a positive review, writing : "Jennifer Morrison's initial feature direction is a delicate movie, honest within the constraints of its fantastical premise. It focuses on relationships, compassion, and every individual's right to live a life of purpose. Sun Dogs is gentle, heartfelt, and skilled. Working with notable actors, she brings nuance and grace to what, in lesser hands, might have been stereotypes of America's struggling working class." [7]

• Sun Dogs on IMDb
• Sun Dogs at Rotten Tomatoes