Wonderful Movie

Admirable film.

It's fun, it's light, [but] it has a hard time when its tries to get heavy.

Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

In 1942, in Yazoo, Mississippi, the lonely and outcast boy Willie Morris (Frankie Muniz) is the only son of the harsh war veteran Jack Morris (Kevin Bacon), who lost his leg in Spain, and the housewife and lovely mother Ellen Morris (Diane Lane). Willie Is bullied by three schoolmates and his only friend is his older neighbor Dink Jenkins (Luke Wilson), who is a baseball player and idol of the town. When Dink goes to Europe fight in World War II, Willie is alone again. However, on his ninth birthday, Ellen gives a dog to her son despite the protest of Jack. Willie gives the name of Skipper "Skip" that becomes his best friend. Skip helps Willie to have friends and to get close to the girl Rivers Applewhite (Caitlin Wachs), for whom he has a crush, changing his life for better. "My Dog Skip" is an adorable tale of loyalty and friendship based on a true story. It is beautiful to see the world through the eyes of a child while he is growing-up. Enzo the Dog is so cute and steals the show. "My Dog Skip" is a wonderful film for the whole family and I only regret that it took me fifteen years to see this movie. My vote is seven.Title (Brazil): "Meu Cachorro Skip" ("My Dog Skip")

I caught this on WGN and wound up watching it because out of 300+ channels on cable, there was nothing else worth watching. My first impression was formed by the syrupy background music that played almost continuously throughout the film. If it had lyrics, they would be, "Open up some Kleenex and just cry, cry, cry." I cried, all right, but for the wrong reasons. Any film that involves the use of animals inevitably includes harming said animals, and My Dog Skip was no exception. From the graphic hunting death of a deer to the verbal/physical abuse of the dog, this project could not have been pleasant for the title character, who out-acted all his human counterparts. Keep in mind the fact that movies are only fictional where people are concerned. Animals only experience it as real-life mistreatment that they cannot comprehend.The plot can be summarized in two words: Who cares? It's a coming-of-age tale about a boy named Willie and his terrier Skip in small-town 1940s Mississippi. Willie has growing pains. He has to contend with a stern father, the town bullies, his complete inability to play baseball, an inexplicable, mostly one-sided friendship with a WWII veteran who is painted as the town pariah, and a first love named Rivers, to whom we never find out what happens. Most of the characters are completely forgettable, and the narrative consists of loosely-pasted vignettes of a dreary childhood. I only saw this movie last night, and I don't remember much of anything except being surprised to learn that, in the c. 1945 South, white families could watch young black men playing baseball after dark. (Read Maya Angelou if you don't understand what I'm saying here.) A violent scene leaves the viewer feeling lousy, after which the story just peters out. We see Willie rowing his girlfriend on a pond--probably an allusion to his Rhodes scholarship, which requires athletic ability--and then he suddenly grows up and blows town, leaving the aging Skip all by himself. If the film's hypocritical concluding drivel doesn't make you want to throw up, then nothing ever can. Comparatively speaking, Old Yeller was more cherished than ol' Skip.I don't recommend this film to animal lovers of any age, particularly children, because they won't understand its conclusion. I'm not even sure that I do, if for no other reason than to wonder how in the hell a dimwit like Willie ever made it into Oxford.

I'm taking a creative writing class and we had to watch this film to learn about autobiographical writing. It's a cute story, but Kevin Bacon is the only actor in this film that can act. I've never been a fan of Frankie Muniz, but of all the crap I've seen him in, this is his worst. The acting was so poor, by not just Muniz, but all the children in the film, that it completely pulls you out of it. However, I feel that this is not entirely the fault of the actors, but also the poor director. Parts with large groups of people, say in crowds, seem incredibly staged, and cheering in a crowd takes no acting ability, thus the fault is in the director. If this wasn't enough, the character development is just as bad. By the end of the film, the only character we really know anything about are Willie (Frankie Muniz) and his dad (Kevin Bacon). Even Dink (Luke Wilson) who is an important character to the story and is Willie's hero, we know next to nothing about. This film has such a good story to it, that it's a shame the acting is so bad. I feel this film had a lot of potential in it's good story, but director Jay Russel, actor Frankie Muniz, along with most of the other actors ruined it.

This ranks among the worst movies that I've ever had the misfortune of seeing. I thought the movie Fluke was alright and I loved Old Yeller, so it's not that I'm against animal movies as a rule; but the combination of six things meant that I could not enjoy this movie. a) The script was the worst I've ever endured. Does every line have to be cliché? I threw up five times. b) The acting job ranged from mediocre at best to laughable at worst. c) The many subplots were boring and never went anywhere in addition to having little to no meaning. d) The characters were annoying and unsympathetic (aside from the dog). e) The soundtrack was terrible and extremely repetitive, not to mention unoriginal. f) Overall this movie stole from all other animal movies in every way, shape, and form.The only thing about this movie that made me sad was that I wasted my time watching it, and that my stomach hurt from throwing up too much. Also, it would have been more entertaining if something actually happened. Movies that only have morals like "Everyone needs a friend" or "dogs are cool!!!" are bad, as a general rule.In conclusion only watch this movie if a) the only other choice is some other kind of torture, and even then, be careful, b) because you LOVE DOGS SO MUCH and you cry at all dog movies because you own a dog and it might die or you did have a dog and it died, etc., or c) because you are in need of a laugh and don't mind the side effect of throwing up. But in most cases, just don't waste your time and save your eyes, ears, and stomach.