ASD Movie Night with Dog

We went for our first outdoor movie night with Donna at The Grandstand yesterday night (Aug 21, 2016)!

Donna by my side while the movie plays at ASD Movie Night outdoor cinema with dog. ;)

The nostalgic movie night was organised by Action for Singapore Dogs (ASD) to raise funds for the ASD medical budget. We were originally supposed to watch My Dog Dou Dou, starring Flapper Choo, at People’s Park Carpark. But due to withdrawal from some sponsors, the event was eventually held at The Grandstand. The movie was replaced with Hotel for Dogs.  

ASD Movie Night outdoor cinema experience with your dog

Despite the change in plans, Donna and Cookie’s good mood were not affected! :P

Donna mongrel and Cookie Shihtzu at ASD Movie Night at The Grandstand.

And thanks to Cookie’s mom and dad, we were seated in the third row of picnic mats so our line of sight to the screen was not too obscured by tall people in front.

The movie started but I was distractedly trying to get Donna to settle down, and since I’ve watched Hotel for Dogs before, I erm, paid more attention to my phone and my dog. :P

This movie about dogs… Donna more interested in dinner, mom! :P

Donna was happy to lie by my side as long as the chicken consistently flies to her mouth :P But the chicken lasted for one quarter to half of the movie only. So it wasn’t long before Donna got restless and on her feet. :P

Donna heard plastic bag!! Is that food in the plastic bag for me??? Please??? Cookie on the other hand was so chill, she even laid on her side and rested during the movie!

Pokemon GO Macarons from Bonheaur Patisserie, PasarBella, The Grandstand

And when we busied ourselves taking photos of the Pokemon macarons we bought before we ate them, Donna wanted a piece of the action too! :P

Can I have the Slowpoke macaron please???

Besides Slowpoke, Mr P also bought the following Pokemon, Hello Kitty and Cookie Monster macarons:

Top row (left to right): Pikachu, Charmander, Slowpoke, Cookie Monster. Middle row (left to right): Koffing, Pollywag, Digglet. Bottom row (left to right): Abra, Hello Kitty, Bellsprout.

Pokemon macaron flavours: Pollywag (vanilla), Koffing (Nutella), Slowpoke (Raspberry)

Pokemon macaron flavours: Squirtle (peach), Pikachu (orange), Diglet (milk chocolate)

The humans were just teasing. Please don’t feed sweet macarons for humans to dogs.

Eventually I took out the beef dinner for dog that came with her doggy movie ticket, and she settled down again. :P

I’m ready for my beef dinner now, mom.

We finished the rest of the movie in peace, and blissfully distracted by all the pokemons congregating about the pokestops around us because of the lures. :P

Also read: Pokemon GO – Monster hunting with dog

About the movie: Hotel for Dogs

This is a 2009 comedy which tells the tale of a bunch of teenagers who started to rescue dogs, putting them up at an abandoned hotel.

The kids displayed extraordinarily inventive mechanical skills that saw them creating among other contraptions, a theatre for dogs that offered them the virtual simulated experience of being in a car ride. On top of that, they also appeared to be extremely proficient dog trainers working with dogs who queue up to experience the car-ride simulator in an extremely choreographed fashion.

Rotten tomatoes gave this movie a 45% rotten rating, the critics’ consensus being: “Hotel for Dogs may appeal to children and dog lovers, but it’s ultimately contrived, predictable, and simplistic.”

That said, it definitely has it’s funny moments. Watch out also for the many choreographed scenes that I’m sure will be a heart-thumping nightmare for sound-sensitive Donna. These include a scene where a dog ran through a room while large furniture and objects fell in his wake in a cacophony of crashes. Most of the time in the movie, these dogs were not animated or special effects. They were genuine canines.

Michael Lantieri, who worked on the devices and contraptions in the movie, said,”You start it and you realize that it’s alarming the dogs. There’s a buzzing sound or a whirring that you would normally take for granted, so we really had to change our technology, and for each dog, because they have their own personality as well. Some dogs would only like certain things, other dogs would like other things. For instance, the ball-throwing, the fetching machine, we had started out with an electric motor and we ended up with an air cylinder. Those are challenges that you don’t even think of…” – Michael Lantieri talks the Gadgets for Hotel for Dogs

The movie makers casted rescues from shelters. Two thirds of the dogs that appeared in the movie are said to have come from animal shelters, including the main character Friday. It took months of training to get them ready for the silver screen. – Hotel for Dogs: Meet the four-legged stars

Mathilde Decagny who rescued the wire-haired terrier Cosmo aka Friday from a shelter, said, “He was a scared little dog and now he’s so outgoing.” – Inside “Hotel for Dogs”

ASD Movie Night Goodie Bags

Besides the regular treats and poo bags, one of the more interesting items inside the goodie bag was the dog collar that lights up, suitable for a black dog like Donna who blends into the dark of the night :P

The goodie bag however, would have been perfect if they had included popcorn for dogs. What is a trip to the cinema without popcorn??? :P

Billy + Margot Popcorn for Dogs, buy on Amazon.

Here are the snippets of Instagram stories shared that night that I compiled to end off this post! ;)

Donna behaved well, didn’t I, mom? Well, if we discount your shameless begging… :P

Also check out learnings from this event on my Facebook post here.

Come :) Follow weliveinaflat.com on
Instagram @weliveinaflat |  Facebook donna.weliveinaflat | Youtube Mutt Vlog