Better Late Then Never

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

Great story, amazing characters, superb action, enthralling cinematography. Yes, this is something I am glad I spent money on.

An appreciation for fine art, virtue, and relationships marks this family film set in Europe when Flanders was still Flanders before it was swallowed up by France and Belgium. But parents should be aware that this 95-minute video also features a good dollop of death, beginning with the demise of the hero's mother at the very beginning when he is just a baby. Raised by his impoverished grandfather (Jack Warden), Nello (Jeremy James Kissner) nevertheless finds happiness in the dog he finds left for dead, a neighbor girl who becomes his soul mate, and the talent for drawing he inherits from his mother. He even becomes the protégé of the town's premier painter (Jon Voight). But life holds many bitter lessons for Nello, including the death of his grandfather when he is a teen, betrayal by those he trusts, and his own near-death. Gorgeously shot on location by director and co-writer Kevin Brodie, this movie has many rewards, including, finally, a happy ending. For mature 7-year-olds and up.

I never thought I could come to such a ultimate decision about a film, but I can, without a doubt, say that THIS IS THE WORST FILM I HAVE EVER SEEN.It is masterfully bad. One has to do a fantastic job of walking the fence just right between something being great and amusingly terrible like a Ed Wood film. This thing does neither. It stagnates in a threshold between the two and produces a lukewarm saccharin nothing. I can't even start to list the layers upon layers of reasons that this flick is a complete mess... even for children. It is done horribly. I would be interesed to see what Jack Warden, Cheryl Ladd, or John Voight actually thought of it once they screened it.

A DOG OF FLANDERS / (1999) ** (out of four)By Blake French: "A Dog of Flanders" is a sweet, gentle, lovely motion picture about a young boy's desires and relationships with his everyday neighbors. It is the kind of movie that has its heart in the right place, but the quality of filmmaking is just not present. I feel a subtle guilt for giving the film a negative review because "A Dog of Flanders," directed by Kevin Brodie, is of such innocence and kindness. But the movie has an appearance quality of an callow amateur-contrived dialogue, typical costume designs, shameless sets-not surprisingly its filmmakers are fairly new at this business. Bruce McGill ("The Legend of Bagger Vance") and the veteran actor Jon Voight are a few of the recognizable names in the cast. Many of the remaining performers are either not remotely popular or dried out has-beens, even though they do a considerably good job at portraying the tender characters. "A Dog of Flanders" has been done before, on TV and in the movies. This is not to say there's no reason to refresh Ouida's sentimental fable since most of us probably have not seen any of the previous versions. Here, we get the same kind of sappy scenes and heavyhearted noble messages, dealing with issues like poverty, trust, death, passion, self confidence, following your dreams, hopelessness, regret, mistakes, and or course, love. The film is not really about a dog, though but about a boy who lost his mother at an early age and raised by his poor elderly grandfather. The boy, named Nello (Jeremy James Kissner), finds a dog left for dead in the snow and adopts him (her?) and falls in love with both the dog and a rich girl named Aloise (Madylin Sweeten). Because of his social status, her philistine father wants his daughter to have no part with Nello. Nello also becomes friends with an proficient artist, Michel de la Grande (Jon Voight), who takes an interest in the boy's drawings and encourages him to enter a big art contest. Jon Voight is good in his role, feeling confident and classy, a major step up from his performance in the painfully rotten horror flick "Anaconda." Jeremy James Kissner provides the film with an empathetic performance that is sweet and sweet-tempered. Jack Warden portrays a character with frailty and charm. However, there are just too many familiar clichés in the plot to recommend the picture. Many kids will find it boring and tedious, as will many adults. "A Dog of Flanders" has enough spirit and the right attitude, but the rest of the essential elements of a successful movie just are not here.

This heartwarming film is based on the 19th century children's novel by Ouida Sebestyen. It has been made into a movie several times, starting in 1914 with a woman playing the starring role of the boy Nello. In the 1959 version David Ladd played Nello.Now in 1999 two wonderful boys play Nello. First, Jesse James plays the young Nello at about 7 years of age. He plays the orphan lad to perfection, tugging at our hearts with his waif looks and shaggy blonde hair. Jesse's previous acting experience includes the movie "Message in a Bottle" and a series of Tommy Hilfiger ads.Later, the older Nello, aged 12, is played by Jeremy James Kissner. His previous movie was a part in "Great Expectations" in 1998. Again, Kissner plays the orphan boy perfectly. See him and the dog, after whom the novel and the movie are named, earning their living delivering milk in a little cart pulled by the dog. This was how that breed of dog, Bouvier de Flanders, earned their keep in the 19th century.In the style of the Victorian dramas, the poor neglected orphan boy finally wins the prize. Its the getting there that's the interesting part of the story.Interesting side bar: Jack Warden plays Nello's grandpa. Warden played this role nearly 30 years ago, as the grandpa to Charlie, in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory - another story of a poor boy who wins his reward after much effort.Watch for these two boys in more movies. There's lots of parts calling for comely blondes with haunting eyes. These boys really make you want to take them home, feed them, give them a hot bath, new clothes, and take them into your heart. Its a long tradition starting with Freddie Bartholomew in the 1930's.