| The
Review: |
In many
of today's movies, stories that involves animals as main characters
usually give the animal more interest than its human counterparts.
There were the three lost pets of Disney's "Homeward Bound:
The Incredible Journey," the larger-than-life St. Bernard
of "Beethoven," and not to mention his newly arrived family
in "Beethoven's 2nd." Since much of these films' plots took
place around animals, it seems only necessary that we care
more for them than anything or anyone else.
It's interesting
to look at movies of this particular nature in this day and
age, and compare them to a classic along the likes of "Old
Yeller," one of Disney's most revered and well-told tales
in which we care for humans and animals alike. Telling Fred
Gipson's heartwarming and heartwrenching tale of a simple
life where hardships are learned with true impact and understanding,
the film has endured the challenges of time and modern film
to remain one of the best films ever made.
Written
in 1956 and selling over three million copies by 1973, "Old
Yeller" was the book Gipson considered his best work. Penning
the screenplay for the movie, it's no surprise that he kept
everything that remained dear to his readers intact: the distinct
characterization (both canine and human), the all-encompassing
appeal to the young and old, and the simplistic elements of
life on the terrain that has become the center stage for tales
of personal growth and hardship.
Here,
we are introduced to the Coates family, who have settled on
land in Texas and have made themselves a home. They lead a
simple life, one involving planting of small crops for food,
upkeep of the grounds and their meager yet comely home, and
a devotion to family and virtue that seems but a faded memory
when seen through today's disaffected eyes and minds. Husband
Jim (Fess Parker) and wife Katie (Dorothy McGuire) care for
one another wholeheartedly, and want nothing more than to
raise their children, Travis (Tommy Kirk) and Arliss (Kevin
Corcoran) with a sense of decency and respect.
After
Jim departs for many months to sell off their herds for money
and supply, Travis becomes the man in charge. In his eyes,
we see a longing to be just like his father: hardworking,
learned, and full of knowledge. Placed in the setting of the
frontier, where he must work to keep up the home in the absence
of his father, we see a life-affirmation in Travis, a testament
of the values of morality that built this great nation, and
not merely a boy tilling the soil or rebuilding a destroyed
fence because his elders told him to do so.
Old Yeller,
of course, was the cause of the fence's demise, leading Travis
to oppose his mother's insistence that they keep the dog for
Arliss to grow up with ("You had a dog as a child," she tells
him, "so it's only fair that Arliss should have one."). At
first, Travis wants nothing to do with the dog, but once he
realizes how obedient and protective the dog comes to be,
there is a friendship developed between the two that not even
death could put asunder.
The great
thing about this bond is its subtlety, the way it presents
itself through the simplistic elements of frontier life and
the actions of its characters. Old Yeller's protective attitude
towards the Coates family feels more like unconditional love
than natural instincts, displayed effectively in a scene where
he rescues Travis from a violent pack of hogs, sustaining
serious injury. At the same time, Travis himself becomes so
attached to the dog that he puts his own health aside after
this accident to return with his mother to Old Yeller's side
and help him back home.
Dorothy
McGuire is a stunner in this scene: as the mother, she keeps
a stern face and a cool, sharp attitude. She knows the extent
of her son's dog's injuries, and that it could cause certain
death, and yet she is calm and collected, never once showing
the slightest sense of hysteria or agitation. And Tommy Kirk,
as the young, impressionable Travis, shows a great depth of
feeling and naivety about life's hardships and trials that
keeps us aware of his fragility underneath his strength. When
faced with the possibility that Old Yeller may have a fatal
disease, he shrugs it off with a smile, but we can see the
unease in his eyes. That, my friends, is the essence of great
acting.
The film's
ending is a hard-hitting lesson on the tribulation of growing
up, that which is saddening but enlightening at the same time.
It becomes the life force of "Old Yeller," driving home the
emotional connection between its two characters in a way that
is simple but big-hearted, and simply touching. A great friendship
between a boy and his dog has become one of the world's most
cherished and beloved films, and it's easy to see why.
|
| The
Extras |
You
can't go wrong with a classic like "Old Yeller," and luckily,
Disney has brought it to the DVD format in a two-disc edition
that is sure to please. Along with the commentary on Disc
One, the movie also opens the way in which it was originally
shown in theaters, with the animated short "Bone Trouble"
starring the Disney character Pluto.
Disc Two begins with "Old Yeller: Remembering a Classic,"
which features interviews with the cast and crew on the beginnings
of the book, the translation to film, and their own personal
thoughts on the impact the movie has had on generations of
film lovers and Disney aficionados. Tommy Kirk adds more of
his memories and experiences in a section of conversations,
while a montage of footage from various Disney films illustrates
the numerous animal characters that have played major roles.
The history of the Golden Oak ranch is explored as well, revealing
the movies that were filmed there, and how it has become one
of the more popular locations for filming, even today (you'd
be surprised to learn that even an Eddie Murphy movie took
place here).
Accompanying
these are a wealth of background information on Disney and
the movie, from photos and productions stills to radio spots,
all of which is sure to please those who anxiously await such
classics as "Old Yeller" to hit DVD.
|
