Buddy - Un gorilla per amico

My Aunt Gertrude did own a gorilla named Buddy, but she also owned another named Massa, and they combined the lives of the 2 together.

First let me give you the true ending, Buddy was sold to the Ringling Bros circus, his name was changed to Gargantua, Massa was sold to the Philedelphia Zoo, and lived to be the oldest living Gorilla in captivity.

The story was hollywoodized to the extreme. If they had stuck to the facts, maybe it would have been better.

Gertrude also raised prize winning Saint Bernards, having over 100 on her estate in Brooklyn. She won the Westminster Dog show blue ribbon 5 times in a row. She helped to develop the "modern" pet foods. Since before then people just fed their pets scraps.

Also just one more minor note, my family is Jewish, yet in the movie, she wore a cross, and as far as I know, no-body in my family was paid or had given permission for the movie to come out.

One of the worst films I have seen in some time, this movie was all the more disappointing because it missed the opportunity to say something very important about man's relationship with animals.

There is almost no value to this film as it stands. It's never explained why Rene Russo's character wants to keep so many animals and turn them into humans, or why her husband, by all appearances completely sane, puts up with it. One meaningless scene follows another, none of them with enough humor or pathos to merit watching.

This was a nice, gentle film with no villains, pretty colors, nice surround sound, a nice recreation of the early 20th century and a fast-moving story. That's the good news.

The bad news is that for a story that is supposed to be "true," it is ludicrous. No animal understands human language as well as another human. Duh! Not in this movie; here they do, which leads the filmmakers into their gigantic plus for Darwinism. They even bring a priest into the picture who proclaims (while looking into "Buddy" the gorilla's eyes, "Those are not the eyes of an animal!"

Are you kidding me?They aren't even subtle about their evolution propaganda and it's some of the most ridiculous baloney I've ever heard.

Too bad because, as I said, it's basically a nice film with nice people. They even show a nice husband, played by Robbie Coltrane. Hollywood usually doesn't show husbands in a good light. In their twist political correctness, women are good and men are bad. Not here.

I just watched Buddy for the first time on TV. I thought it was great! I am a big animal lover and yes, I too treat them more like my children than animals.

Buddy is a movie that will delight animal lovers. I really felt that Rene Russo portrayed the bond between her and the gorilla. The loved each other.

When Buddy ran free at the fair, it was the frightened screams he was met with that frightened him. It was just cruel when people threw things at him. It very much saddened me when the inevitable happened. I cried and cried. I do not understand anyone who does not love this movie. The only thing I can think of, is that if you don't like this movie, you don't like animals.

My tastes may be a little more refined or educated than some previous reviewers. This is not a candidate for the Academy Awards, but still, it is a lovely movie. It is based on a true story and played by a capable and entertaining cast. The first half of the movie is hysterically funny.....the humor is simple, but very entertaining........(if you tastes lean toward juvenile humor such as "Bevis and Butthead", you may not agree). The rest of the movie is very "heart-warming" and even suspenseful. All actors deliver superb and energetic performances. Most of the staging is beautiful and wonderfully period with the exception of some computerized scenes at the World's Faire. Even Paul Ruebens is perfectly cast and does a perfect job! It was captivating and involving for family viewing and for those whose tastes are not limited to high-tech imagery and gory destruction. While I am also a big sci-fi fan and adore murder mysteries and suspense, I still found this to be a pleasing movie that truly involves the watcher in the story.....that is to say....those of us without narrow minds and tastes. If you dislike animals, this movie is not recommended.