Beethoven is a 1992 American family comedy film, directed by Brian Levant and written by John Hughes (under the pseudonym "Edmond Dantès") and Amy Holden Jones.

The dog becomes an important part of the family: he helps Ryce talk to her crush Mark, scares off some bullies harming Ted, and saves Emily's life when she falls into an irresponsible babysitter's swimming pool.

Dr. Varnick tells George of a supposed mental instability among St. Bernards that makes them potentially dangerous and violent, advising him to watch Beethoven closely for any sign of viciousness.

George worries that his family will similarly hate him; when he returns home, his fears are realized when his children refuse to eat dinner with him.

George then remembers that the receptionist told him that Beethoven would not be put down until the next day, before noticing that Varnick has no bite marks on his arm.

Sparky, a captive Jack Russell Terrier that Beethoven had earlier befriended, bites Varnick in the crotch, causing him to fire a shot into the air.

Ted hears the gunshot and drives the car through the warehouse entrance, crashing into a cart and launching numerous syringes into Varnick, sedating him.

[6] Principal photography began on May 1, 1991, in Los Angeles, California, under the direction of Steve Rash,[1] but he left the production due to creative differences and was replaced with Brian Levant.

[8] The Washington Post's Rita Kempley praised the film as a "a waggish tale of canine chicanery, an uproarious if impawsible symphony of drool, doggy fidelity and chewed shoes.

"[9] Johanna Steinmetz of the Chicago Tribune wrote that "Beethoven charms its way through [its] highly formulaic premise with the help of some smart animal-handling, a few excellently realized visual stunts and narrative montages of life a la dog.

"[10] The Hartford Courant said: "The most important work comes from a hulking, brown-eyed, sad-faced big star named Chris, who makes Beethoven into a Benji for the '90s, a sort of canine Wallace Beery or Walter Matthau.

"[11] In The New York Times, Caryn James wrote Beethoven is "much more enjoyable than it has any right to be" and "tugs all the right strings, in a manner strangely reminiscent of Home Alone.

Nor did I find anything particularly new in Beethoven, although I concede that the filmmakers secured an admirable dog for the title role, and that Charles Grodin, who is almost always amusing, has what fun can be had playing the grumpy dad.

[18][11][19] Chris Hicks of the Deseret News wrote that "the first half brings to mind the best elements of Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, with its delightful portrayal of domestic bliss gone awry.

"[18] Hal Lipper of theTampa Bay Times called the film an "87-minute commercial" for pet food company Iams, but praised Bonnie Hunt's performance.

[9][4][15][20] In The Boston Globe, Betsy Sherman wrote the film had "a strange tone of desperateness in its depiction of a 'perfect' suburban nuclear family.