M'n beessie en ik (2022) on Netflix

Plot summary

A tragicomic documentary about the inseparable bond between pets and their owners. Do their pig, hairless cats, dancing dog, spiritual snail, or Insta-cat fill the gaps of their human existence?

My Pet and Me is an endearing and tragicomic portrait of a couple of colourful people and their beloved pets. In a light-hearted quest, director Johan Kramer explores the meaning of love between humans and animals, gently touching on themes such as loneliness, comfort, and loss. His intimate approach produces several heart-warming and sometimes absurdist scenes.We meet house pig Frans, who keeps on jumping in and out of the trunk to find a nice place to walk, a hairdresser with a house full of hairless cats, a therapeutic pug, a champion dog-dancing, a giant spiritual snail, and a world-famous Instagram cat. What connects their owners is the boundless love for their animals, but also the apparent void they try to fill with them. A divorce, a baby on the way, autism, death, the search for a partner or the meaning of life - the owners find a listening ear in their pets. The film subtly plays with the boundaries of friendship, interdependence, and the concept of egalitarianism within human-animal relationships. Who exactly needs who?As in his previous films, Johan pays a cinematographic tribute to the ordinary Dutch landscape and its households. While we hear the animals smacking, sniffing, and grunting around, we are carried along their living experience.