I avoided watching this old time favorite until recently. I thought, “how could a movie about a boy who has to shoot his rabid dog be remotely interesting?” Well I was wrong, this movie really is interesting....remotely.
I saw it this last summer when I watched it in order to compile a “greatest Disney movie list” so I’m a little hazy on exactly what happened but just know that he does in fact shoot that dog, and everyone is very sad. You’ll be sad too.
The strongest point isn’t the story, which is ok, so much as the strong performance by Tommy Kirk who appeared in a number of famous Walt E. Disney era live-action movies such as the Swiss Family Robinson. He never had much of a career but he is almost universally admired by Disney nerds, and for good reason.
If you’ve never seen it, or heard of it, then know that Tommy Kirk plays the son of a Texas cattle rancher (Fess “Davy” Parker) who must leave his family for an extended period....to sell cattle I guess. During this hard time the rancher’s son (Tommy Kirk) finds a stray dog who provides the family some comfort.....until the dog contracts rabies and becomes a threat to everyone. It’s not really a movie about a boy and his dog as much as it is about having to do hard things, as an adult, even if they go against your latent childish inclinations.
It’s not going to change the way you view the world, it’s not going to rock you with impressive visuals or memorable music, nor is it all that interesting outside of the fact that a boy has to shoot his dog. But it does tells a decent story, with a good moral, with stunningly consistent mediocrity.
I give it 3 out of 5.... citations for animal cruelty.
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