White God

I would not call it a horror movie unless they meant the animal torture that was difficult to see if you are an animal lover like me. The movie is well made if you think about some scenes that have more then one hundred dogs in it. It sure must not have been easy doing that. But honestly it was not my kind of movie. I don't know why I watch this kind of movies sometimes. I just can't stand watching animal abuse even if I know it is fake. The revenge of the dogs is also not very credible honestly. A pack of dogs would never act like that but I guess it's okay because it's fiction. Zsófia Psotta, the kid playing Lili, did a good job though. She obviously has talent as an actress. All in all it's not a bad movie but, if you like me don't like to watch animals getting abused, then I would just skip this one.

At first it seems like a children's movie, but then it becomes too dark. It's a well made movie. The girl's acting is good.

It can be useful for us to reflect on the treatment we have with our pets or with animals in general.

Lili is eleven years old and has a beloved dog – Hagen. Her parents are split up and when her mother has to go for a 3 month jolly with work to Australia – she has to stay with pops. Only he lives in an apartment where mutts are verboten. All cross breeds are seen as inferior to pure breeds in Hungary.

Despite her best efforts Hagen ends up on the mean streets of Budapest and she, in her innocent way, sets out to find him. Now that is the very simple synopsis for what is a film with so much more to offer. This is a cast of thousands – of dogs that is. All of the mixed breed dogs were untrained and rescued from shelters. The performances are stunning. There are scenes of animal butchery and animal cruelty – so if that will offend then this may not be for you.

It is also a parable about how one species dominates another in the belief it is the superior – and we all know that in parables pride leads to a fall.

This is also shot beautifully in a beautiful city with stunning realism and an eye for the impact that such a powerful story can make. Official entry fro the Academy Awards for best foreign language film 2015 and winner of Un Certain Regard prize at the 2014 Canes Film Festival – this is amazing, original, stunning and highly entertaining cinema.

'White God,' or 'Feher isten,' beckons with a promising premise: A young girl's father puts her beloved dog out on the streets, and he must learn to survive as she looks for him. Every film poster, and the first visuals we see in the movie, further promise rather harrowingly that every dog really does have its day.

That is, certainly, the film we get. But it nonetheless seems to fall a little short of expectations.

Most notable about 'White god' are the human and canine leads. Bodie and Luke are the two dogs who accordingly portray Hagen in the film, and they have been expertly trained and are very convincing in their roles. More relatable is Zsofia Psotta as human protagonist Lili. She shines in her performance struggling with an overbearing father who doesn't listen, and determined to find her beloved companion. We feel Lili's frustration, exasperation, and anguish very keenly, emotions readily given life with the young star's capable skill.

Whether one is an animal lover or just especially empathetic around humans, this is a film that's not particularly easy to watch. The experiences of Hagen being tossed out of his home, and what he faces living on the streets, is heart-breaking to see played out on the screen. Likewise, again, Lili's troubles are very understandable: we've all had difficulties with parental figures, and the very idea of losing a pet is almost too much to bear.

The emotional element makes the narrative extra exciting as it runs toward the climax: We look forward to seeing Hagen and his new friends find triumph, and there's great anticipation of Lili being reunited with him. Yet this is unfortunately where 'White god' falters a bit.

We don't quite get the catharsis we were hoping for. Hagen and the other dogs get a chance to give as good as they got as they run the streets, but it doesn't reach the crescendo that we want it to be. Lili does find Hagen, but their reunion doesn't induce the burst of heartfelt tears we expect to find ourselves having.

The ending itself is very satisfying, and ultimately the perfect capstone for the film, especially from a purely artistic viewpoint. Still, after 2 hours of watching Lili and Hagen endure hardship, we want a greater sense of resolution than we get. As a result, as good as the movie is, we're left feeling a bit unfulfilled.

Although imperfect, 'White god' is absolutely worth watching. One should note a content warning for animal cruelty, and a bit of blood, but it's all movie magic: Apart from the trained canine stars, every dog that appears on the screen was a shelter pet that found a home after production wrapped. Now there's a happy ending!

Do you like dogs? Well, there are a lot of them. A story that is sort of allegorical in that the dogs' behavior, which was instilled by their masters (White Gods), is turned against these gods as the dogs become like humans - capable of loyalty, devotion, but also of hate, rage, killing.

I thought some of the roles (dogs or humans) were a little too over-the-top not believable to get emotionally involved. We have bad - parents, merchants, musical conductor, animal control specialists, dog trainers. As for the dogs, although well trained, seemed too well trained.

Storyline is simple. We have a girl, independent beyond her age, roaming the streets at night searching for her lost dog. She finds her dog, but it has changed for the worse. Can it be saved?