In 1948 , Georges Franju made a memorable documentary about a slaughterhouse .
In 1955 ,he was still making shorts and documentaries;after the animals for slaughter ,it was only natural that he broached the domestic animals 's plight when Summer Holidays come around.To some of these pets their masters ' vacation may mean abandonment and even death.
Written by poet Jacques Prévert ,Franju's short goes straight to the heart.The director issued a warning: millions of dogs are abandoned when Summer vacations come because they are too big,too burdensome .
A little girl loves her dog,Pierrot,dearly :we see them play together for the last time before they leave for the seaside ,on the 15 th of August.En route ,they drive through a forest -trust Franju to make any place threatening -,much to the girlie's amazement ;then IT happens :father takes the dog out of the car (the pet probably thinks he is going to play with him),takes off his collar (with the utmost care) ;realizing what fate lies in store for her companion,the little girl screams and cries,but mother,impassive ,deaf to her daughter's plea ,takes her away ; straight-faced , the parents have won their well -earned vacation.
A stray dog cannot believe he's been deserted for good;he returns to his empty place where he finds nobody home.As Prévert ironically points out ,stray dogs always search for human protection ;when they catch him ,he puts up no resistance to them .
Franju lets us in the dog pound where they live in small cages,and where they desperately bark all day long ;sometimes a lucky pet finds back his master ,but after 48 hours ,if nobody turns up,the animal is killed .
It was 1955 ,it's all in the past you're going to say,but it's still going on today in 2018 ;after 8 days ,if a dog is not accepted by a person or an association,euthanasia may wait for him .Former actress Brigitte Bardot ,who has always been an animal activist ,is one of the main personalities who violently denounces the vacationists who leave their loving dog on the wayside.Too bad if they leave a little girl crying for her pet....
