【1986 Archives】

In what may either986 Archivesthe best decision ever made by a movie theater or perhaps the worst decision ever made by a movie theater, the Roxie Theater is going to host a screening of Isle of Dogswhere viewers can bring their actual dogs.

The Roxie Theater in San Francisco is putting on a Bring Your Own Dog screening of Wes Anderson's Isle of Dogson March 19, Indie Wire reported Tuesday. The 4 p.m. PT showing does not require patrons to have a dog, but if you do, you need to buy a ticket for it.

"Dogs are invited and will be in attendance at this screening," the Roxie said in a statement. "Dogs and owners will each need to have a ticket to attend. You do not need to have/bring a dog to attend."

It all seems pretty fun on the surface. After all, who wouldn't want to see a bunch of dogs when they go to a movie? But dogs aren't exactly known for being model patrons.

Many dogs tend to get pretty riled up in the presence of other dogs, and nobody wants a bunch of dogs barking in the middle of a movie. In fact, I knew a dog growing up that would go wild and bark every time a dog appeared on the TV — he wouldn't be able to keep his calm during Isle of Dogseven in a room by himself.

Some dogs have a hard time sitting still for an extended period of time, and many are pretty lax about peeing (or worse) in unfamiliar locations.

"Owners are responsible for their dog’s behavior," the Roxie points out. "Overly aggressive or uncontrollable dogs will be asked to leave."

That's good and all, and hopefully people with unruly dogs will plan on steering clear of the dog-friendly screening, but chances are there are going to be some problematic dogs. No matter how well you train a dog, they're still dogs. And dogs are gonna dog.

If this is a success, maybe it will inspire more Bring Your Own Dog screenings, but more likely it'll be the first and last one that the Roxie puts on. Cleaning up pieces of popcorn and candy wrappers is one thing; cleaning up after dogs is a whole other beast.

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