Misha Agarwal
Dogs are often referred to as man's closest friend for a variety of reasons. They amuse us with their antics, greet us every day with an enthusiastic wag of the tail (regardless of how frequently you leave and return), and provide countless photo opportunities to adorn our social media pages. Apart from this dogs are a great company, stress busters, a humans best friend and most importantly the ultimate entertainer. This loyal animal has not failed to disappoint us even on a TV screen. Let’s take a look at the top 10 all time favourite dog movies:
1. Old Yeller (1957)
Cast: Dorothy McGuire, Fess Parker, Tommy Kirk, Kevin Corcoran.
Directed by: Robert Stevenson
Plot Summary: While Jim Coates is off on a cattle drive, his wife, Katie, and sons, Travis and Arliss, are left behind on their Texas ranch. When a runaway dog named Old Yeller causes damage in one of their fields, Travis tries to drive him away. However, Travis and Katie both warm to Old Yeller when he saves Arliss from a bear attack. As Travis and the brave and faithful dog grow closer, concern grows about an outbreak of rabies.
A superb coming-of-age story, Old Yeller packs a powerful emotional punch thanks to its deft pacing and acute awareness of the fundamental connection between people and their animal companions.
2. Red Dog: True Blue (2016)
Cast: Jason Isaacs, Thomas Cocquerel, Levi Miller, Bryan Brown
Directed By: Kriv Stenders
Plot Summary: Every legend has a beginning. When eleven year old Mick is shipped off to his grandfather's cattle station in the remote Pilbara region of Western Australia, he prepares himself for a life of dull hardship, but instead finds myth, adventure, and a friendship with a scrappy, one-of-a-kind dog that will change his life forever.
3. One hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
Cast: Rod Taylor, Betty Lou Gerson, Cate Bauer, Lisa Daniels
Directed By: Wolfgang Reithernman, Hamilton S. Luske, Clyde Geronimi
Plot Summary: In a Disney Animation classic, Dalmatian Pongo is tired of his bachelor life. He spies lovely Perdita and manoeuvres his master, Roger, into meeting Perdita’s owner, Anita. The owners fall in love and marry, keeping Pongo and Perdita together too. After Perdita gives birth to a litter of 15 puppies, Anita’s old school friend Cruella De Vil wants to buy them all. Roger declines her offer, so Cruella hires the criminal Badun brothers to steal them, so she can have a fur coat.
One of Disney's most enduring, enjoyable animated movies, with lots of dogs and a memorable antagonist (Cruella De Vil).
4. Heart of a Dog (2015)
Cast: Jason Berg, Paul Davidson, Laurie Anderson, Sasha Grossman
Directed by: Laurie Anderson
Plot summary: Musician and performance artist, Laurie Anderson, reflects on the deaths of her husband Lou Reed, her mother and her beloved dog.
Heart of a Dog digs into heavy issues with lyrical, haunting grace, in keeping with much of director Laurie Anderson's eccentric work.
5. Wallace & Gromit: The curse of the were-rabbit (2005)
Cast: Peter Sallis, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter, Peter Kay
Directed By: Steve Box
Plot Summary: The plucky characters from a series of animated shorts, Wallace and his dog, Gromit, make their feature debut here. After starting a pest control business, the duo soon land a job from the alluring Lady Tottington to stop a giant rabbit from destroying the town’s crops. Both Wallace and the stuffy Victor vie for the Lady’s affections. If Wallace wants to please his pretty client, and best Victor, he needs to capture the pesky bunny.
Wallace and Gromit star in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, a subtly moving and fantastically bizarre tale.
6. Lassie Come Home (1943)
Cast: Roddy McDowall, Donald Crisp, Dame May Whitty, Edmund Gwenn
Directed By: Fred M. Wilcox
Plot Summary: In a small Yorkshire village during the Great Depression, financial pressures cause the parents of young Joe Carraclough to sell his beloved dog, Lassie, to the Duke of Rudling, After the duke takes the collie to his Scottish estate, his granddaughter recognizes that the dog misses her former owner and allows her to escape. Facing great dangers and small kindnesses on her lengthy journey, the faithful dog sets forth to rejoin her beloved family.
7. Best in Show (2000)
Cast: Michael Hitchcock, Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara
Directed By: Christopher Guest
Plot Summary: As hundreds of eager competitors from all over America get ready to compete in what is unquestionably one of the biggest events of their lives — the Mayflower Dog Show — the tension is apparent, the excitement is building, and the heady fragrance of competitiveness is in the air. Both the dogs competing and their owners are as amazingly diverse as the magnificent nation that produced them.
Best in Show is a superb illustration of writer, director, and star Christopher Guest's aptitude for improv comedy. It has an endearingly offbeat premise and an exceptionally skilled cast.
8.Lassie (2005)
Cast: Peter O’Toole, Samantha Morton, John Lynch, Peter Dinklage
Directed By: Charles Sturridge
Plot Summary: The family of young Joe Carraclough adores Lassie, their devoted dog. But after losing his mine position, Joe's father is forced to sell the collie to the Duke of Rudling, who wants it for his granddaughter. Lassie escapes and travels 500 miles to find her family after the duke relocates to northern Scotland to dodge the threat of World War II.
One need not be a dog lover to fall in love with Lassie, a beautifully crafted version of the traditional collie story.
9. Lady and the Tramp (1955)
Cast: Peggy Lee, Barbara Luddy, Larry Roberts, Bill Thompson
Directed By: Clyde Geromini, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
Plot Summary: This timeless Disney animated film centres on Lady, a spoiled cocker spaniel whose luxurious existence begins to slip away when her owners adopt a child. Lady is befriended and protected by the rough stray mutt Tramp when she ends herself on the street after some stressful circumstances. The two canines start falling in love, but their many differences and additional drama at Lady's home threaten to keep them apart.
Lady and the Tramp is a sentimental charmer with a strong token sweetness, yet the music and vibrantly coloured animation are technically brilliant and create a memorable experience.
10. White Dog (1982)
Cast: Kristy McNichol, Paul Winfield, Burl Ives
Directed By: Samuel Fuller
Plot Summary: After accidentally running over a dog, an actress chooses to oversee his treatment. She soon learns that the dog has been trained to launch racial assaults.