The Truth About Cats & Dogs (1996) on Netflix
Abby Barnes hosts a radio show about cats and dogs. A caller named Brian asks her out, and she describes herself to him as her neighbor Noelle.
- Netflix3.4/5
- IMDb6.3/1029,102 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes85%
Trailer
Plot summary
Abby Barnes is a veterinarian who hosts a radio call-in show called The Truth About Cats and Dogs. A photographer named Brian phones in for advice, then sends her a gift and asks her out. Abby agrees to meet him but, insecure about her looks, describes herself over the phone as having the features of Noelle Slusarsky, her neighbor, and then stands him up. After she steps into an argument between Noelle and her boyfriend Roy, the two women become friends. When Brian turns up at Abby's workplace at the same moment as Noelle, Abby persuades her to pretend to be the radio host.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Truth About Cats & Dogs (1996)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- Screenwriter Audrey Wells said she was inspired by the 1897 play Cyrano de Bergerac by Edmond Rostand and wanted to modernise it by flipping the genders: Abby Barnes (Janeane Garofalo) is Cyrano, Noelle Slusarsky (Uma Thurman) is Christian de Neuvillette, and Brian (Ben Chaplin) is Roxane.
SPOILER
Janeane Garofalo said the film changed a great deal on its way to the screen. It was originally supposed to be a small-budget independent film "where there would be much more complexity to all the characters, and Abby and the guy don't wind up together at the end".- Several years after the film's release, Garofalo became an actual radio talk show host when she co-hosted The Majority Report on Air America from 2004 to 2006.
- The film opened to $6.77 million, nearly tying the Jean-Claude Van Damme film The Quest, which took $7.03 million. It held the number 2 spot at the United States box office for three consecutive weeks and finished with $59 million worldwide.
