Marley & Me
The film “Marley & Me” stars Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston. It is a biography (based on a true story book), from the point of view, of a dog that they receive as a puppy (a yellow lab named Grogan – played by “Jonah” (he was also in the 2007 documentary “Zoo“) and have the dog for a pet for 13 years. The puppy is a typical dog in many ways – untrained, high energy, destructive (but not though malice), and eager to please his humans (from a dog’s point of view).
As the family and their canine family member grow, the humans have children as they accept (and love) Marley the way he is until his dying days. Continue reading
The Shaggy Dog (2006)
In 2006 Tim Allen starred in the remake of the 1959 film, “The Shaggy Dog” gets bitten on the hand by a dog that was used for animal testing. In the process Dave (played by Tim Allen), at times, turns into a bearded collie which helps him solve some mysteries as well as solving problems at his home. Continue reading
Eight Below
The 2006 Disney film, “Eight Below” was a story about survival and the strong bond a handler has with his dogs – whether it is one dog or an entire team of sled dogs.
The story starts out with Jerry Shepard, who is a sled dog guide in an Antarctica based research center, taking a scientist to a site where me feels he might be able to find meteorite fragments. They are called back and need to leave in an emergency – Jerry is promised that they’ll be able to come back for the dogs but unfortunately they are not able to and the dogs are left to fend for themselves in the Antarctic wilds. The story revolves around the dogs’ story of survival as wel as Jerry’s dedication to them and he spends everything he has trying to get back to his dogs left behind.
All of the dogs are huskies which are used as sled dogs in snow covered areas of the world (Arctic and Antarctic). The husky’s thick and pluch coat ofers them protection from cold, moisture, and wind along with their strength and stamina make them the perfect dog for distance sledding. Continue reading
Harry Potter series
I haven’t watched all of the films yet but from what I’ve seen most of the animals are CGI (computer generated graphics). There are many animal trainers and coordinators listed in their credits. Continue reading
The Golden Compass
While animals do play a very significant role in this film (being the humans’ dæmons), as far as I can tell all of the animals were CGI (computer generated graphics) and none were real. There are also no animal trainers listed in the credits.