I thoroughly enjoyed this powerful film, particularly for its witty writing, great camera work, and editing. It is on par with To Kill a Mockingbird in terms of its comprehensive treatment of prejudice. My favorite scene is McNichol's chance encounter with the dog's original owner. Throwing tranquilizing darts at R2D2 was a brilliant metaphor for the story, i.e., (1) the futility of suppressing someone's lifetime of a robotic knee jerk reactions to the world with "treatment". On another level, Fuller seems to seek the termination the animal as a sidekick (and criticizing the absence of animal at all in cinema) and while longing for a return to depictions of animals (including the human animal) as a genuine menace. I appreciated the characters' mixed motives and questionable methodology.
I was delighted to see Curtis Hanson was a co-writer.
Criticisms? It should have been shot in black and white. The allusions to brain surgery were weak, and the animal experimentation implications could have been more subtle. The motive(s) of the Burl Ives character is unclear. Kristy McNichol's attachment to the dog is inexplicable and unconvincing, although her performance is very good. Her devotion might have been demonstrated in other (in varying degrees of cheesy) ways, i.e., photographs of her beloved pet, saying outright "but I love him!" or perhaps showing the dog's reflection in her sunglasses. But why strain the story with her waiting by the phone for the news that the dog is cured? I was much more convinced by the trainer's passion.
It's a great film nonetheless.
I was delighted to see Curtis Hanson was a co-writer.
Criticisms? It should have been shot in black and white. The allusions to brain surgery were weak, and the animal experimentation implications could have been more subtle. The motive(s) of the Burl Ives character is unclear. Kristy McNichol's attachment to the dog is inexplicable and unconvincing, although her performance is very good. Her devotion might have been demonstrated in other (in varying degrees of cheesy) ways, i.e., photographs of her beloved pet, saying outright "but I love him!" or perhaps showing the dog's reflection in her sunglasses. But why strain the story with her waiting by the phone for the news that the dog is cured? I was much more convinced by the trainer's passion.
It's a great film nonetheless.