Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale

One of the few non-disney animation films that are truly great. This story of rural New Zealand follows the adventures of a farmer, the local kids and a dog- Dog. The only animated feature new zealand has ever produced is a classic. Exciting, hilarious, scary it has everything. The unique style of the comics works well on film and the atmosphere created by the dingy colours at some times is truly immersing. See this movie now!

An important New Zealand/Australian animation film (officially New Zealand, but the animation was done in Australia with a local crew) that was an enormous success in both countries in the 80s thanks to the popularity there of the comic strip that it adapts. The animation is very good and the film has some freshness to it, but the episodic narration and the songs make the experience kind of a struggle.

Vale Murray Ball - and thank you TV3 for screening this homage to a bygone era.

Yes it's dated, sexist, homophobic and probably racist to boot, but there's still something quintessentially endearingly cheerful about this snapshot in time of a bygone age.

Our heroes face Homerically impossible odds against the evil forces of the Murphys, rats, wild pigs, the weather and anything else you can think of - but time after time they snatch victory from the jaws of defeat - this is the kind of spirit that led to the invention of Number 8 fencing wire, this is New Zealand...

A great piece of work by New Zealand cartoonist Murray Ball. This shows New Zealand culture at its best. Most people will think of xena when they think of New Zealand entertainment but this is really a piece of art.

This film was indeed a big hit when it came out in the mid-80s. I watched it again recently for the first time since seeing it on the big screen, and was suprised at how different my perception was of it as an adult rather than a kid. As a kid I don't remember the awful synth music being quite so awful, yet of course this can be put down to the decade which spawned it. The voice of the dog was also far too weak and naieve, and was the script, I didn't feel that it captured the dog's character as I imagined it having grown up reading the Footrot Flats cartoons. Aside from the script and soundtrack though, I thoroughly enjoyed watching this movie again. The backgrounds are great and really capture the dark gritty feel of rural New Zealand. The animation is good and the rugby scenes are funny and really capture the end of an era - farmers dreaming of being All Blacks, not for money but for glory. The days before the All Blacks donned Adidas shirts. I think that if the soundtrack was re-recorded and some of the script changed this A Dog's Tail could be re-released and make a comeback in the theatres. However as a slice of 80s it is a pristine example as it is.