Hachiko

Well, I just chucked $18.00 at a PRC approved film, and to be honest I'm not sure how I feel about that.

But, to the film. Dogs, or any animal, are a huge responsibility. You have to train them, get them socialized and acclimated to humans, groom them, feed them, take them to the vet, and keep them happy. But, for al that they are loyal and loving to a fault.

I did not see the American version with Richard Gere, instead I just heard of this remake tonight. Intimately shot with a lot of care, and exceptionally well directed, this film hits all of the technical marks as well as dramatic and artistic ones. It does pull at the heart strings between two-thirds to three quarters of the way through, and is in actuality a four act or perhaps even a five act play with different emphasis in different acts.

Dare I say it, but the dog hits all of his marks, as does the all Chinese cast. No moments are overstated here, as one often expects in a lot of Asian productions. This is pure dramatic film making at some of its finest, and I say that with a bit of a grudge since the PRC's film makers copied yet another western (American) intellectual property, but this time to good effect. No one tries to out play Richard Gere as an actor here.

The film got somewhat sappy towards the end, and just went a bit overboard for me at the very end. But in the end everything worked well. There are some practical questions of how the dog survives some of this time towards the end of the film, but the film's emphasis isn't on his survival but how animals see the world and how it explains their devotion, or just ignorance about life and death.

The image was a touch out of focus at the Meteron in San Francisco tonight, so it was hard to keep up with the subtitles, and the image was slightly fuzzy, but otherwise I could follow the film.

A pretty endearing movie. Check it out.

The original story went by like this - Hachiko, an Akita dog born in 1923, formed an unshakeable bond with his owner, Professor Hidesaburo Ueno, in Tokyo, Japan. Every day, Hachiko would faithfully accompany Ueno to Shibuya Station in the morning and greet him upon his return in the evening.

Tragedy struck in 1925 when Ueno passed away unexpectedly at work. Unaware of his owner's passing, Hachiko continued his daily routine, waiting for Ueno at the same spot in Shibuya Station every afternoon. This loyal vigil lasted for over nine years, until Hachiko's own death in 1935.

The film is a Chinese retelling of the story of Hachiko, the loyal Akita dog. Like the American film 'A Dog's Tale (2009)' starring Richard Gere, this movie explores the unwavering devotion of dogs to their owners..

While the dog here isn't an Akita, the premise of the film remains the same - dogs will always be loyal and devoted to their owner. I personally found this movie very touching.

As a little piece of trivia - Hachiko is derived from two words "Hachi" meaning 8 and "ko" meaning prince. In this film, the dog was named "Ba Tong" derived from a tile in the game Mahjong that has 8 circles.

Anyway, the film has managed to cut a lot of onions for me.

Maybe another decade I'll get to see a retelling from another country of Hachiko - the world needs to be told of such undying love.

"Hachiko" is a Chinese remake of the Japanese film "Hachiko Monogatari". Directed by Xu Ang and starring Xiaogang Feng and Joan Chen, it recounts the timeless story of a dog's loyalty to his owner in a manner befitting to the country in question that tells it.

In the city of Chongqing, China, college professor Chen Jingxiu (Xiaogang Feng) one day finds a lost puppy while commuting to work. Chen decides to look after the puppy at home until an appropriate owner can be found, despite objections from his wife Li (Joan Chen), who dislikes dogs. Over time, Chen decides to keep the puppy after developing a loving bond with it, eventually naming it "Ba Tong" after he finds the young dog carrying a Mahjong brick for the number eight in its mouth. One year later, Ba Tong has grown up and makes a habit of following his master Chen to the station every morning to see him off for work, while returning later in the evening to the same spot for the pair to walk home together. As time passes by, various events occur throughout Chen's life, but Ba Tong continues to remain loyal as he accompanies his owner to and from the station every day.

The year 2023 contains an important anniversary for dog lovers everywhere, as it marks exactly 100 years since the birth of Hachiko, a Japanese Akita Inu renowned for his devotion to his owner, professor Hidesaburo Ueno. Even almost a decade after the professor's death, Hachiko would still go to the exact spot every day at Tokyo's Shibuya Station hoping that his owner would be there to greet him, but sadly this would never happen. Hachiko's loyalty has touched many hearts around the world, to the point where he has become a part of pop culture, even being loosely referenced in a notable episode of "Futurama". There have also been feature films made specifically about Hachiko's life, with the first being the 1987 Japanese movie "Hachiko Monogatari" and the second a contemporary 2009 American remake "Hachi: A Dog's Tale", which starred Richard Gere as the titular dog's owner. As a means of celebrating Hachiko's centenary, the Chinese have now made their own movie titled simply "Hachiko", which, like its two predecessors, reminds the audience of how loyalty is one of the most beautiful traits someone can have.

Like its American counterpart, China's film has taken some cultural liberties in how it tells this classic story. The most noticeable change is in the breed of dog used to play the Hachiko equivalent Ba Tong, swapping out the iconic Akita Inu for an unspecified mongrel dog. Considering how Akitas are unfamiliar to Chinese locals, it does make sense for this compromise to be made, although it does unfortunately detract from the idea that the Akita is especially renowned for its strong devotion to its master. One could argue that this may have been done solely due to the Akita's lack of presence in China, however, this creative decision could also be interpreted as a method of social commentary. It is a notorious fact that some people in China actually eat dogs the same way westerners might eat beef and pork, and the film uses this as a means to bring attention to that concerning matter.

In one particular scene, Li sells the puppy Ba Tong to an anonymous buyer who does not leave any personal details or reasoning why he wants the dog in the first place. Upon hearing about this, Chen uses his gut instinct to look for him, with his search leading him to a meat market downtown. Chen passes through stalls with slaughtered animals hanging upside down, which gives a feeling of uneasiness considering the array of exotic meats available for purchase. Correct in assuming the worst, Chen soon spots the innocent puppy tied to some chickens in cages and sneakily frees him from a potentially terrible fate when the business owners aren't watching. The very notion that Chen is automatically paranoid about somebody using a puppy as a food source shows how bad things must be for the poor canines living in China, and it is necessary for all audiences to know that something must be done to put a stop to this permanently.

Despite thematic changes like this, the film's basic plot remains relatively the same. Anybody familiar with Hachiko and what he went through will know exactly how this story is going to play out. With that said, it's a safe assumption that this will not end on a happy note. As someone who loves dogs and has seen both prior film adaptations, I can wholeheartedly say that they rank among the saddest movies I have ever seen, reducing me to a blubbering mess whenever I think too deeply about their conclusions. This film manages to follow suit and there's no doubt in my mind that any animal lover watching will be moved to tears by the end, so viewer discretion is advised.

This time around, the story gives a bit more breathing room to develop the human characters, with focus on Chen's family being a necessary side plot to the main story. For instance, we learn why Chen's wife Li initially dislikes dogs and why she feels uncomfortable around them. This means that she later has the simple character arc of overcoming her irrational fear to appreciate Ba Tong's loyalty to her husband. It is also shown that Chen's son Xinqiao (Jugang Bai) feels neglected by his father, as the latter is spending too much time around Ba Tong to notice his own son's future career prospects. Naturally, Xinqiao also learns about the importance of having a dog like Ba Tong in his family, as it is his faithfulness that has helped keep them all together for so long.

Though I am unfamiliar with these actors outside of this film, I think both Xiaogang Feng and Joan Chen did a fine job in their respective roles as Chen and Li, respectively. While there isn't too much depth to how each of them are written, they provide just enough credibility for the audience to view them as a respectable Chinese family living with their dog. Like Richard Gere before him, Feng plays Ba Tong's owner Chen Jingxiu as a humble, good-natured man who deeply cares about his canine companion, so much so that he even considers the dog to be like a son to him. The film's most wholesome scenes are with Chen walking Ba Tong to and from the station, as you can't help but appreciate how adorable the dog behaves when he wants nothing more than to play with his master. Similar to Joan Allen's character in the American film, I liked watching how Joan Chen showed Li learning to love Ba Tong in spite of her blatant cynophobia (the fear of dogs). Even she can't resist the loveable pup's positive influence and soon relents to her husband's wishes to keep him as a pet.

For an almost century old story, this contemporary take on the life of Hachiko is a cute, emotional film that has clearly been made with good intentions. It showcases the enduring timelessness of one dog's love for his master while also finding a way to bring attention to some important issues regarding their treatment in countries like China. Even if you don't care all that much about dogs, this film nonetheless reminds us that they are unmatched when it comes to loyalty. Regardless of which adaptation you choose to watch, whether Japanese, American, or Chinese, all three share the identical theme that forming a bond with a dog just might be one of the best decisions you ever make.

I rate it 8/10.

(Second time sending this since it was deleted for no reason whatsoever.)

Hachiko was a real Japanese dog from the breed Akita Inu, this breed has a peculiarity that isn't found in most breeds, they are extremely loyal to one person.

I have watched the brutal 1987 original and the lame 2009 American rip off, both show an Akita as the dog the story was based on, however this Chinese adaptation changes the meaning of Hachiko's name, which was supposed to be "lucky", to "eight dots" - a mahjong reference . Also, another huge issue is how Hachiko, or rather Batong, isn't an Akita Inu, but rather a Chinese pastoral dog.

So this adaptation pushes away core elements that makes the story of Hachiko so important, even the American adaptation didn't do that, but the Chinese adaptation changed those to make it seem like it was something that happened in China.

Such a shame they felt like they should change those elements of the story.

For the record:i: A Dog's Tale (2009) is not the original film based on this amazing dog's life. The Richard Gere film was itself a remake of a 1987 Japanese film.

This retelling is from China and is not without its charm. It hits the right emotional beats too, even though the soundtrack might seem a bit schmaltzy to American ears. The tear jerk moment (when you, the audience realize what the dog cannot)) is still a gut punch and the entire film is shot beautifully. I think most have a problem with this version because of the breed of dog used. Both previous films made about this dog were historically accurate in their depiction of a very particular breed: The Akita . This was an integral part of the story. The change to a Chinese breed kind of negates the well earned reputation that the Akita has for their unflappable loyalty to just one person. It is the main reason I could not give it a higher score.