The Call of the Wild review – a remake with little bite - MW

The 1903 novel Yukon Jackon Adventure has been screened numerous times. Various versions have played, among others, Clark Gable, Charlton Heston, Richard Dreyfuss and now Harrison Ford as famous explorer John Thornton. So far, they also often have a dog like Buck, a pampered Californian pet sold to carry a sled in the freezing north.

However, in the clever Disney version of this story, Buck is a CGI work, created around the motion recording performance of Terry Notary (probably better known as the aggressive monkey in Ruben stlund The The Square). The appeal of filmmakers using CGI rather than real dogs is no mystery: it offers much higher levels of control; he has tamed some of the most embarrassing wilderness. The truth about the truth of Hollywood warns that you should never work with animals ...

But from the moment Buck slipped on the screen, it became clear that something essential was missing. A man in a digital dog costume may be easier to steer, but it gives a human display rather than a dog. The film works best if it is seen as a very sophisticated blend of live action and animation. In doing so, it will delight the family audience; It is a cohesive and moving adventure. It is only slightly altered.

MW