Beethoven (film) Jones as Dr. Herman Varnick. It features music composed by Ludwig van Beethoven. Principal photography began on May 1, 1991, in Los Angeles, California. A group of puppies are stolen from a pet store by two thieves. A St. Bernard escapes and sneaks into the Newtons' home. The workaholic father, George Newton, doesn't want the responsibility of owning a dog, but his wife, Alice, and their children, Ryce, Ted and Emily, convince him. When Emily plays a portion of Ludwig van Beethoven's Fifth Symphony on the piano, he barks along and they name him Beethoven. Beethoven helps the children overcome
Beethoven in film the score's performance instructions allowed performers a great deal of leeway in interpreting it, giving them license to follow the pages in any order, omit pages, and to incorporate Beethoven music not already included in the score. In fact, Kagel's own recording of the film score is based on extracts of Beethoven's works not present in the published version. The film was controversial at the time and received a generally hostile critical reception in both West and East Germany. "Beethoven – Days in a Life" is a 1976 feature film directed by Horst Seemann and produced by the former East