Picturehouse Blog
Featuring exclusive film previews, interviews and much more, this is the place for anyone slightly obsessed with cinema.
Featuring exclusive film previews, interviews and much more, this is the place for anyone slightly obsessed with cinema.
04 Feb 22
Created by Toby Rose in 2001, the Palm Dog Awards at the Cannes Film Festival (named after their most prestigious prize, the Palme d'Or) is a ceremony designed to show appreciation to the canine cast members that make us laugh, cry and cheer. Often as important to the film as the cast and crew, these four-legged friends are as cute as they are talented. Read on to find out some of the best dogs to win the Palm Dog – you'd be barking mad to miss 'em.
Winner of the 2021 Palm Dog Awards, the three springer spaniels, Rose, Dora, and Snowbear, are an important part of The Souvenir Part II. Protagonist Julie (Honor Swinton-Byrne) can often be found having conversations with her mother Rosalind (Tilda Swinton), and the trio of hounds aren't ever far behind – whether it's at her parents' country home or out for a walk in the fields. They're the real life dogs of Tilda Swinton herself, proof that they easily fit into this family – here's hoping they'll follow Tilda onto the cast list of whatever she's up to next.
The Souvenir Part II is in cinemas from today.
We'd argue that the true hero in Once Upon A Time In Hollywood isn't Leonardo DiCaprio's Western actor has-been Rick Dalton, but Brandy: loyal companion to Brad Pitt's driver Cliff Booth, and referred to by director Quentin Tarantino as a callback to Hollywood dogs of old like Lassie. Brandy is seen as Cliff's better half, showing the soft side of a man who always has to be seen as confident and mature – especially alongside Rick, whose career downturn has made him into a bit of a trainwreck. She also plays a pivotal part in the end of the film…to say any more would spoil it.
Winning the 2019 Palm Dog, Brandy was played by three dogs: Sayuri, Cerberus, and Siren, with this being Sayuri's first film. Brad Pitt had to bond with all three dogs before the film started, explaining why the connection between man and pup feels so real.
The fact this is the only film on this list with the dog's name in the title might suggest just how important this particular dog is. Kelly Reichardt's Wendy And Lucy is an emotional, movingly realistic film about homeless woman Wendy (Michelle Williams) and her faithful companion Lucy, the only tether she has to a world that's increasingly hostile to her. When Wendy leaves Lucy outside a store and gets caught shoplifting (in a cruel twist of fate, she's attempting to steal dog food), Lucy winds up missing – and Wendy goes on a mission to find her. The connection between Wendy and Lucy is far more nuanced than many relationships on film, human or otherwise – a great reason why it was a rare unanimous win for Lucy at the 2008 Palm Dog Awards.
Managing to portray a mischievous but loyal character who always dresses down Adam Driver's Paterson with her disappointing looks, Marvin the bulldog in Jim Jarmusch's gentle, poetic Paterson was played by Nellie. She won the first posthumous Palm Dog Award in 2016, and it was a trophy very well earned: Marvin is best thought of as the child of the film's central family (Driver's Paterson, alongside his artistic girlfriend played by Golshifteh Farahani), and his wary relationship with Paterson is always bound to bring a smile to a viewer's face.
Last but not least, one of the most famous dogs to win the Palm Dog is also one of the few dogs to earn a star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame! Uggie charmed the hearts of millions when he appeared in The Artist. Playing Jack the Dog, he's the definition of 'Man's Best Friend', always proving to be a friendly companion for Jean Dujardin's film star Valentin. He also ends up saving Valentin's life when he is down on his luck – quite an impressive feat for such a tiny terrier. Much like the Best Picture-winning film he's part of, Uggie definitely holds a place in Hollywood history.
