Classic Disney is known for its adaptations of children’s stories. And it just does not get more classic than their latest film, The Call of the Wild. Now, for those of you who slept through classes in the 1980s then this was THE book on every teacher’s reading list. And for those of you born post-1990 then The Call of the Wild is Jack London’s best-known novel; and sorry you missed out on the greatest decade of living.
For the benefit of everyone, a quick synopsis. No spoiler alerts. The Call of the Wild is a short story about Buck (dog) and his adventures in the Yukon. Why it was on reading lists of Australia will forever remain a mystery. It was short perhaps? It was exciting, maybe? We did read The Kon-Tiki Expedition too—two books which gave me a lifelong dislike of adventure fiction. No wait, it had a message. And it was mercifully free of violence, sex and all things female—no wonder the nuns loved it. So this makes Disney’s movie perfect family fare. Buck is as adorable as any Disney dog can be. He’s wonderfully clever – the only thing he doesn’t have is thought bubbles, but we know what’s going on in his mind.
His expressions are perfect – thank you CGI. Told through Buck’s eyes, The Call of the Wild is his bildungsroman. While Buck is the star, there are a few others to help him. Harrison Ford plays Buck’s human offsider; Ford is grizzled and aged as any self-respecting Yukon loner could be. Dan Stevens is the moustache-twirling English bad guy—loved his wardrobe and him. My personal faves are Perrault (Omar Sy) and Francoise (Cara Gee, yes of The Expanse), the Canadian postal team. It is a charming story filled with dramatic landscapes and high-octane moments. Children shouldn’t be bored as the story moves at a cracking pace. If you have very young children, be warned they might want a toilet break. In all, this movie is great family fare and I can’t think of a better way to spend a couple of hours in aircon comfort.
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