Better Late Then Never

An Exercise In Nonsense

Clever, believable, and super fun to watch. It totally has replay value.

An old-fashioned movie made with new-fashioned finesse.

Entertaining and fun dog movie shot in marvelous outdoors with very well trained animals . Exciting life of a Collie named Lassie is here expanded to include the adventures of the humans who surround the dog . Set England and Scotland , about the fate of a wonderful Collie dog and the people who own and command them , there are splendidly revealed as Lassie narrates the circle of his life and seen through its own carefree life . A family in financial crisis is forced to sell Lassie , their intimate dog . As Sam (John Lynch) , his wife (Samantha Morton) and children are forced to sell the dog to the Duke (Peter O'Toole) . The Duke moves to the Scottish Highlands for the holiday season and Lassie is hundreds of miles away from her true family . Lassie escapes , and sets out on a journey home suffering many hardships , passing several owners both good and bad and after achieving freedom . This dog more than a Hero is a legend .Handsome take off of the Eric Knight family novel but sometimes fails to capture qualities that make this book a classic . There were some earlier "Lassies," in literature of the 1800's, as well as in silent films . Eric Knight, a British-born author, wrote a Lassie character in a short story in 1940 , then expanded it to a novel called "Lassie Come Home," which became the first Lassie sound film . This is a new classic for a new generation, a thrilling saga of courage and loyalty . The animals in this film were in no way harmed or mistreated , and all scenes in which they appeared were under strict supervision with utmost concern for their handling . Narrated quite energetically , as the story is efficiently told and through its profound and wizened eyes . One thread that connects all the Lassie projects is Lassie herself . Every one of the long string of Lassie productions has featured a collie directly descended from the original canine star, a dog named Pal . The new film was made with 8-year-old Lassie the ninth, and three other non-related collies , whose biggest challenge were in scenes swimming across Loch Ness on her way home . The impressive scenery , photography and music enhance the story of ¨Lassie¨ and its adventures , sufferings and adversities . The tale is treated in good sense and high sensibility ; environment , animals , landscapes combine to enhance the glories of nature , one of which , after all , is silence . Good cast full of fine British actors as Peter O'Toole , Peter Dinklage , Kelly Mcdonald , Robert Hardy , Edward Fox and John Standing . Glowing and glamorous cinematography by Howard Atherton ; of all the Lassie films ever produced , this was the first one to be shot in the 2.35:1 aspect ratio . Sensitive as well as emotive musical score by Adrian Johnston . The music all plays with the soul , it is so delicately composed, performed, and chosen for the movie that it is worth seeing just to enjoy the soundtrack . The motion picture was marvelously directed by Charles Sturridge (The scapegoat , Shackleton , Gulliver's travels , Fairy tale). Other films based on this famous novel are the followings : the classic and original Lassie was first performed by a male collie named Pal and played Lassie in all of the early sound films such as ¨Lassie comes home¨ (1943) with Elizabeth Taylor , Roddy McDowall , Donald Crisp , Dame May Witty and Edmund Gwenn ; ¨Sons of Lassie¨ (1945) with Peter Lawford , Donald Crisp , June Lockhart and Nigel Bruce ; ¨Courage of Lassie¨ (1946) with Elizabeth Taylor , Frank Morgan , Tom Drake and Harry Davenport ; ¨Challenge to Lassie¨ with Edmund Gwenn , Donald Crisp , Geraldine Brooks and Reginald Owen . And subsequent follow-up played by Pal's descendants in the TV series and TV appearances and in most Lassie films since ¨Lassie's great adventure¨ (1963) with June Lockhart , Hugh Reilly , Jon Provost , Richard Kiel , ¨Lassie¨(1994) with Tom Guiry , Helen Slater , Jon Tenney and Frederic Forrest , among others .

I've read the book Lassie Come-Home probably more times than I've read any other book, so I know the story well. I've also seen the original Lassie Come-Home movie several times, and it stayed pretty true to the book. This movie is good too, and I enjoyed watching it. The scenery is great, and the music is awesome. But I think it should've stayed closer to the original story. Some things were added, and others were left out. I think a lot of the things that were added fit, but others totally changed the story and kinda messed it up. I felt like Lassie's journey seemed way too short, and she didn't even meet half the people that she did in the book. It just didn't make the journey seem totally real. Also, Joe is way too young. The boy who played him was only 9 when the movie was made, and the Joe in the book was 12. The kid is cute, but I still think Roddy McDowall did a better job of playing Joe and looked about the right age.If you enjoy animal movies and have never read the book, I'm sure you'll enjoy this movie. If you have read the book, you'll probably still enjoy it, but don't expect it to be real close to the book. If you want to watch a movie that stays true to the original story, watch Lassie Come-Home from 1943.

I've never seen any previous version of "Lassie". I only judged by my feelings for this one, and it's good enough.With beautiful cinematography and gorgeous symphonic music, this film is very easy to get yourself involved inside and wander by the plot. The little boy is not classically handsome, but he's very specially cute, like some character coming to life from a fairytale. And surely the collie Lassie is gorgeous enough to catch everyone's eyes, intelligent enough to deal with humans (both the good and the evil) and fortitudinous enough to run across the island to unite with her families. And many supporting roles were played by great actors and actresses and were played greatly.It's a hilarious masterpiece, though occasionally mixed with bitter and sadness. But isn't it what life should be? In this case, it's a good material to teach children with. They will know all the necessary elements of emotions and respect life and people from of all classes.**(spoiler) However, I just don't get it why the dwarf's little dog had to be dead.** I still think death is too cruel a thing to be shown to the target viewers of such early ages. And some scenes were considered too sentimental, thus may possibly prevent some adult viewers.So overall I'll say it's a masterpiece with flaws. Still it may give many families a great time to enjoy.

Everybody likes Lassie. It's a very safe movie for the kids. No cursing. Very little and controlled, mostly off-camera, violence. It seemed a bit boring in the beginning and there was very little action throughout the movie. Peter Dinklage did a very nice job as the puppet master. Lassie was the real star and left us all daydreaming that we owned her. Music and photography was awesome. Even though action was tame, drama was not. The drama of the movie sneaked up on me and took hold during the final 20 minutes of the movie. I started with a little misty eyes and ended up with full scale, non-stop crying for the last 15 minutes. I was not alone. We shared what tissues we had. But, unlike Old Yeller, they were tears of happiness. It took a full hour after the movie for me to regain complete control. Guess I'm just a big softy for families and dogs.