Lassie

Wonderous, wonderful, charming, excellent, sad and happy. I really enjoyed this movie. So will most people except for one moron on this review board. What a lovely movie--the direction, the acting--animal and human---the photography, all superb. A lovely story of a dog's courageous return to the family he loves. Set in the days before WWII, this version of Lassie, to me, is far superior than the 1994 version by a wide margin. Don't miss Lassie. The theater was packed where I went and that says a lot. Reviews for Lassie echo my sentiments. It is a truly heartwarming and tender story. Lovely film that tells a sad story with a happy ending. Great photography. I have nothing but praise.

Intelligent, well made family feature from the original novel, bearing little resemblance to the now campy-seeming US TV series.

Beautifully shot, well scored, and featuring a first-rate adult cast (Peter O'Toole, Samantha Morton, John Lynch, Peter Dinkage) along with some very endearing child actors, this manages to be sweet without being saccharine, sentimental without being cloying.

It even has a nice layer of social commentary about the English class system – the story involves the beloved pet being bought away from a near-starving family who can't afford to say 'no' when a lord offers them cash for their son's faithful companion.

I appreciated that Lassie is treated as a real dog, and not some kind of super-mutt. A great, wonderful dog to be sure, but her behaviors all stay within the realm of real-life dog abilities.

A very good film for kids and tweens, and a not at all bad one for grown ups who might watch with them. While it might not have quite the deep emotional power and/or wild humor of the truly classic family films, it's certainly well crafted and worth watching.

This is a near-perfect film for what it is--a richly imagined, finely-acted, lavishly produced family film, and one faithful to the source; this Lassie is not a dumbed-down version where the dog does stupid pet tricks, but instead the film stresses the importance of the relationship between the dog and her pal, a young lad living in a coal town.

Lassie, by the way is amazingly expressive and simply beautiful. The essential story is probably familiar to anyone over twenty who speaks English, but the film is enriched with cameos from major actors, including Peter O'Toole, James Fox, and Peter Dinklage, and with the lush, verdant vistas of Ireland standing in for Scotland.

While not as emotionally elemental as the classic Roddy McDowell version, this modern retelling also has a strong underlying foundation; the implied criticism of the class system will not be an obvious statement to young eyes, but adults will easily pick-up the points made concerning the privilege of the rich; children of all ages should enjoy this sweet, universal fable.

It is so refreshing to watch a family film that doesn't have to rely only on special effects to tell the story. This film is just how they used to make films with great acting, beautiful photography and of course a lovely story. It's full of emotion and soul and it's just a good all round film the whole family will enjoy. It's about a boy and his parents who fall on hard times and have to sell their beloved dog, which gets taken hundreds of miles away. But his love for his dog never falters and the dogs love for its owners makes it determined to escape and travel the vast distance to get home. We have watched a few blockbusters lately but this film deserves praise. It might have a lower budget, but it has something that we all deep down want out of a film.

Lassie is just a wonderful movie. It has a sweet, engaging story, and everything works so well that you completely forget any areas that fall on the predictable side. Lassie's greatest strength is that it is never afraid to explore deeper and present some mature themes.

The film also looks beautiful. The photography is just marvellous and wonderfully evergreen, while I loved the scenery just as much as it was stunning and quite picturesque. The script is also a strength; it is a very poignant one that cleverly avoids falling into mawkish sentimentality and also balances subtle humour social tension adeptly.

The cast are just excellent. It also helps that the characters are well fleshed out and easy to relate to. Jonathan Mason brings the right amount of pathos to his character, while Peter O'Toole is a warm and charismatic presence and John Lynch, Peter Dinklage and Samantha Morton are also impressive. Lassie though makes the picture endearing, what a cute and talented dog and it makes it easier for the audience to sympathise with Lassie's predicament too.

All in all, a very beautiful and moving film. 9/10 Bethany Cox