Shiloh

Everything about this film is clichéd. From the one dimensional nuclear conservative family values to the animal rights message, this movie reeks of something that is 50 years past it's best viewed by date.

From the characters to the plots, this film puts me in mind of a long Leave it to Beaver episode with a little more edge.

But it's cliché after cliché after cliché... simply horrible. Even my 5 year old didn't like it.

Acting, especially Blake Heron, was great, but the cast was let down by the plastic screenplay.

I would have liked to have seen a little more subtlety, let the viewers discover things instead of just throwing so many clichéd images and lines of dialog at them. Kids are smarter than some give them credit for. Let them discover gravity by watching an apple fall, not by smacking them on the head with an anvil.

Shiloh is a very sweet and charming film, and I guarantee that the whole family will love it. It has nice music, good acting and an above average script. Of course the pace is a bit slow, and the story rather thin in places. On the other hand, the music is absolutely beautiful, and Shiloh was absolutely adorable. The script was very touching and beautifully crafted, making this very gentle and moving to watch. Blake Heron is wholly believable as Marty, and I felt the connection between him and Shiloh. Scott Wilson gives a very good account of himself as the hateable yet sympathetic Judd Travers, and David Moriaty and Rod Stieger also give nice supporting performances. The cinematography was fantastic, even looking at it made the film twice as engaging, and the song Are There Angels? was sung by the ever lovely Sheena Easton, who has done some soundtrack singing before on FernGully, Pebble and the Penguin and the sequel to All Dogs Go To Heaven. Overall, a charming and heartwarming film, that the whole family will treasure. 8/10 Bethany Cox

I really liked this movie. It was believable, and the message about standing up for what's right is always worth repeating. No special effects or explosions, just a simple, poignant story told in straightforward fashion.

Marty, a boy of about 13 who lives in the country with his family, one day discovers Shiloh, a puppy who has run away. It turns out that Shiloh belongs to an ornery hunter named Judd who lives nearby. Judd only sees Shiloh as a tool for hunting and doesn't believe animals have any rights. For Marty, however, Shiloh quickly becomes a friend and companion.

The story unfolds around the struggle between Marty and Judd for ownership of Shiloh. That may sound a little corny, but issues of family, honesty, respect for other species and the importance of keeping promises soon become involved.

As an animal lover I found the story compelling and I'm going to watch it again soon with my grandchildren.

If you look at the jacket, you would expect Shiloh to be about a cute dog that has an I.Q. of 150 who saves the day, or who perhaps accompanies some children on a long hike, fending off wolves and cougars. Or perhaps a dog that makes messes. It is nothing like that at all. Shiloh is a cute, but completely ordinary dog, who does nothing more exciting than licking people's faces and gobbling food.

It is a morality tale. There is the evil Christian who believes God gave us animals to use as we please, including sadistic pleasure.

There is the postman father who equates right with legal.

Then there is the hero, a boy about ten, who argues articulately again and again for a higher heart-centred morality motivated by his loving caring for the young dog Shiloh. He gradually wins over his mom, his dad and even the evil Christian. There is plenty of ambiguity and conflict. It is not a totally black and white tale.

Even though the boy is only ten, he is one of the most heroic figures in movies.

The sudden happy ending did not ring true for me. A more plausible ending would have had the villain eaten alive by his dogs, or some such bad karma.

"From the 'Newbery Award'-winning book," proclaims the Warner Bros. synopsis, "Shiloh, an adorable beagle, runs away from his neglectful owner, and is found by young Marty (Blake Heron). Marty knows that Shiloh belongs to someone else, but is determined to save the dog from more neglect. Against the wishes of the dog's owner (Scott Wilson) and his father (Michael Moriarty), Marty risks everything to make the dog his own." Good summation of a great film for young children, based on a classic novel.

If memory serves, there was no incongruously flirty "tomboy" girlfriend in Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's original story; this character was played up to give the film greater appeal, probably. Still, Dale Rosenbloom does well in capturing the essence of the novel, which thoughtfully plays up the issue of animal rights. "Shiloh" and the humans perform well, with Mr. Wilson (as Judd Travers) adept at conveying the villainous owner of Shiloh is actually a wounded man. He has the right to kick Shiloh around, or does he?

******* Shiloh (11/10/96) Dale Rosenbloom ~ Blake Heron, Scott Wilson, Michael Moriarty, Ann Dowd