Hollywood Goes to the Dogs
The breakout star of the powerful new film Wendy and Lucy is Lucy the mutt, who plays herself.
Notwithstanding Disney’s animated box-office smash Bolt , about a talking white German shepherd who plays a K9 superhero in the movies and labors under the delusion that he possesses superpowers off-screen, not all successful dog movies are cute kid stuff. Bolt is a white German Shepherd who bears an uncanny resemblance to the actor supplying his voice, John Travolta; Bolt’s best friend is a little girl named Penny, voiced by Miley Cyrus. But in 1982, a very different white German Shepherd starred in a very different movie called White Dog.
One of the great Samuel Fuller’s last films, this celluloid examination of racism centers on a white German Shepherd trained to attack black people; the young actress who rescues the dog as a stray (she’s played by Kristy McNichol, seventies-era teen sweetheart and Miley Cyrus precursor); and the black trainer, played by the excellent Paul Winfield, who dedicates himself to re-programming the dog. The film’s very grown-up message is that racism is learned behavior — not unlike nuisance barking – that can be unlearned.
Long viewed as a cinematic bête noire — Paramount was so nervous about White Dog that it played in theaters for just one week, then was later unspooled at New York City’s prestigious Film Forum in 1991 — this controversial, misunderstood film boasts quite the cinematic pedigree, with a screenplay co-written by Curtis Hanson (based on a story by Romain Gary ) and soundtrack by Ennio Morricone. At long last, White Dog has just been given its scholarly due by the Criterion Collection, which lovingly restored the uncut version and released it on DVD complete with a heaping helping of irresistible cookies, including interviews with Hanson, dog trainer Karl Lewis-Miller (who also wrangled the animals in Cujo, Beethoven, and Babe), and the film’s canine star, who’s interviewed by Fuller himself.
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Julia Szabo produces and writes the weekly "Pets" column for the Sunday New York Post. Her website is Pet-Reporter.com.
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7 Comments
1. chundy:“Homelessness affects dogs and people in exactly the same way: suddenly, and through no fault of their own, individuals, regardless of species, become casualties of circumstance.”
Indeed, alcoholism and drug abuse are epidemic in the dog world.
Dec 10, 2008 - 4:26 am 2. Bonnie_:I would also argue that dogs, once adopted, show their host family love and affection.
Homeless people have a tendency to rob, abuse, and sometimes kill theirs.
I’m afraid Ms. Szabo doesn’t know much about the homeless population in this country.
Dec 10, 2008 - 11:42 am 3. Karin:Another hard-hearted comment: I remember seeing a homeless girl who had a beautiful Great Dane as her companion. This girl was about 18-20, looked perfectly healthy, and not apparently on anything. It pissed me off for the dog’s sake, as she sat on the sidewalk begging, eating a donut, and feeding part of it to the dog. There is NOT ONE REASON this girl could not get a job. Just lazy.
Dec 11, 2008 - 7:11 am 4. kelly k:I bought a bag of dogfood and dropped it in her little area.
“Right now, animal shelters across this country are filled with four-footed victims of the current economic crisis….”
I’m getting tired of these “victims of the current economy” statements. Trying to frame everything as if this is 1930 is just sloppy and inane.
Shelters are *always* full of animals that their owners gave up, for both understandable (such as old age) and inexcusable (e.g., boyfriend of the week doesn’t like dogs or former owner couldn’t have been bothered to research the trendy breed in the first place) reasons. Animal lovers know that shelters and rescue programs need our support *all* the time.
Dec 11, 2008 - 3:16 pm 5. Listen up:Dogs end up in pounds because owners are too cheap too lazy too dumb too heartless (or all of these) to care for the animal! It is more than a shame it is cruel.
Dec 11, 2008 - 3:40 pm 6. Don:We should eat dogs and be done with it. : )
Dec 11, 2008 - 6:28 pm 7. mishu:Shelters are *always* full of animals that their owners gave up, for both understandable (such as old age)
Old age is a horrible reason to put a dog in the shelter. Owning a dog is a responsibility for the life of the dog.
Dec 14, 2008 - 7:55 pm