Merv
Published December 17, 2025
Film info
- Title Merv
- Director Jessica Swale
- Year 2025
- Run time 1hr 45m
- Genres Comedy, Romance
- Tagline A different breed of romantic comedy
When their beloved dog Merv loses his spark after their split, Anna and Russ are forced into the world’s most awkward co-parenting arrangement. Hoping to shake Merv out of his funk, Russ takes him to Florida for a much-needed getaway-only for Anna to show up unexpectedly. As Merv slowly gets his groove back, turns out fixing their dog’s broken heart may lead to a few sparks of their own.
Live blog
| Time | Comment |
|---|---|
| 0:16 | They swapped the lion for a dog! |
| 6:08 | Those nostalgia montages are quite good for quick exposition. |
| 9:53 | The opticians is stressful enough, I don’t need to see it on screen. |
| 12:39 | I want a button that says no. |
| 22:22 | “Are you pulling a Ferris Bueller?” “No, I’m just taking some sick days… unofficially.” |
| 33:17 | Dog yoga! |
| 35:30 | “It’s Yappy Hour!” |
| 40:16 | I’m not really on board with the dog birthday party but I am here for the puns. |
| 50:05 | I endlessly love it when they say no, I’m definitely not doing it. Cut to them doing it. |
| 1:04:51 | Does dairy make you snore more? Research required. |
| 1:19:16 | Emotional scenes on the beach are hard. |
| 1:22:21 | Great holiday when they’ve all come back more depressed than when they left. |
| 1:26:15 | The t-shirt is genius. |
Thoughts
This probably isn’t a movie I would have reached for if it wasn’t a holiday movie, because I’m not mad about dogs particularly. Actually, it was pretty good, very funny, an excellent rom-com which is always a nice surprise in the current movie climate. The only real problem with it is that it’s not all that Christmassy… they go on holiday to a Florida beach and so most of the film is on the beach and in the sunshine.
There’s a bit of festive fun at the start and end though, so it’s worth a watch at this time of year, for sure. Also, Charlie Cox is so adorable.
Rating: 4 / 5
