Dog lovers, take note: Be prepared to bawl your eyes out at "Marley & Me," David Frankel's sure-footed adaptation of John Grogan's best-selling memoir about an extremely unruly Labrador and the family whose home he joyously overruns.

Much like the book, the stakes in this movie are fairly low-grade: Everyone is well-educated, upwardly mobile and attractive; the biggest problem the hero seems to face is which high-profile writing job, among multiple offers, he should accept.

But the core of this story — that sometimes we need the barking wisdom of a four-legged creature to make us realize what's truly precious in life — is fundamental and true; and the movie has been made with intelligence and affection. It's the rare tear-jerker that doesn't make you feel guilty in the morning.

"Marley & Me" also features a lovely lead performance by Owen Wilson, who comes across as more open-hearted and sincere than ever before. He plays John Grogan, a reporter who begrudgingly accepts a position as a columnist at his Florida newspaper. His favorite subject soon proves to be Marley, the unmanageable, irrepressible dog he and his wife Jenny (a predictably underused Jennifer Aniston) adopt.

But John yearns to follow the footsteps of his ambitious best friend (Eric Dane), an investigative newshound forever jetting off to far-flung locations across the globe. (Alan Arkin does nice, if slightly familiar, work as Grogan's perpetually cranky editor.)

Nothing much happens here, or at least nothing that would seem to justify a feature-length film: Marley misbehaves; John and Jenny express their frustrations, to Marley and to each other; Marley further misbehaves; John and Jenny have kids and wrestle with whether to stay in Florida or move to Philadelphia. (The screenplay adaptation is by Scott Frank and Don Roos.)

But as he proved in "The Devil Wears Prada," director Frankel has a knack for moving the proceedings along at a steady and charming clip. And in the final 20 minutes, as Marley confronts a crippling stomach ailment that seems to have no cure, the movie manages to be deeply affecting without ever resorting to easy sentimentality.

Anyone who has grown older alongside a pet, only to have to finally bid adieu to that irreplaceable best friend, will have their heartbreak eloquently reflected on the screen.

Just remember to bring tissues.