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My Dog Skip
A shy 9-year-old in 1942 Mississippi gets a puppy for his birthday and makes new friends. Based upon the best-selling childhood memoir of award-winning author Willie Morris.

Starring Kevin Bacon, Diane Lane, Frankie Muniz...  View more >

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Please Note: Reader Reviews are submitted by the readers of The BigScreen Cinema Guide and represent their own personal opinions regarding this movie, and do not represent the views of The BigScreen Cinema Guide, or any of its associated entities.

[--- Good ---]by  
Mar 6, 2000
It wasn't until my brother and sister adopted dogs that I realized just how much emotional maturity it requires to have a pet. An enormous amount of courage is a prerequisite to love, and that certainly includes pets. Whenever our family would get together, the conversation would always at some point shift toward the dogs. The humorous stories my family would recite were limitless, and were shared not only for entertaining conversation, but I think almost as a way to reveal the amount of happiness and dignity having those pets gives them. It's always a joy to listen not just for laughs, but to see their faces glow with pride in possessing the ability to love something without limits.

"My Dog Skip," the new movie based on the award-winning book by Willie Morris, certainly captures the essence of loving a pet, but also the inherent danger in feeling too strongly for something. The story is set in Yazoo, Mississippi in 1942 when, in an effort to preserve democracy, young men were being sent off to war. Little Willie Morris (Frankie Muniz), just days away from his ninth
birthday, is having a hard time saying goodbye to his closest (and only) friend - Dink Jenkins (Luke Wilson), a superstar athlete whose time has come to honor his patriotic duty. Willie is an awkward kid who prefers reading to sports, and is the frequent target of the neighborhood bullies. He has no friends, and his mother (Diane Lane) wishes to give him a puppy for his birthday, feeling it could cure his loneliness and teach him responsibility. His father (Kevin Bacon) is not hip to the idea, concerned over his son's ability to deal with loss after the inevitable closeness a pet would give. Jack Morris' objection is understandable - we learn that he lost his leg during the Spanish Civil War, and knows something about the concept of loss. After a short debate, she finally convinces him to allow Willie the gift - reminding him that their son cannot grow intellectually and emotionally without learning all the lessons of life... the joyous moments as well as the painful ones.

With the help of Skip's bubbly outgoing personality, Willie emerges from his shell and becomes more involved in his surroundings. He begins to fit in with the other kids, and soon gains the attention of the prettiest girl in school. Complications arise when Dink returns from the war, not as the glorious star athlete when he left, but as a disgraced soldier who went AWOL after being faced with the harsh realities revealed in the battlefield. Willie's inability to reach Dink on the friendship level he was accustomed to before his departure raises his frustrations to the point where he takes it out on Skip. It is through his relationships with those around him (including Skip) where Willie learns the true power of forgiveness and understands the need to maintain dignity, especially when surrounded by the soil of tragedy.

I've never read the book by Morris, but I'm very curious to after seeing the film. The story contains a surprisingly beautiful narration, which I suspect was taken from various parts of the author's memoirs. Director Jay ("The End of the Line") Russell does a nice job of getting the story's message across by looking at every relationship - this is not just a "dog" movie, but a coming-of-age story where the focus isn't the pet, but the owner's relationship with the pet and how those memories have contributed to his maturation into an emotionally and intellectually capable human being.

The performances help get the point across without getting in the way of the material. Frankie (TV's "Malcolm in the Middle") Muniz wisely resists the temptation to play the character too "cute" - he's very good as an earnest young boy receptive to the lessons he is being taught. Kevin Bacon and Diane Lane are very effective in demonstrating the opposing parental styles of each character - the father whose love for his son is so potent, at times it feels more overbearing than helpful; and the mother whose perception is a little more accurate, seeing that Willie's need for acceptance must be fed rather than sheltered. And Luke ("Home Fries","Blue Streak") Wilson, as the former high school athlete whose self-image is shattered after his battle experience, displays his character's changes in a subtle yet unmistakable manner. He comes to understand that growing doesn't entail forgetting your mistakes, but instead
capitalizing on the lessons they taught you.

When you stop to consider that no relationship - regardless of how omnipotent the feelings are - ever lasts for eternity, the amount of courage it takes to give all of oneself is absolutely staggering. Any relationship takes courage, and this is a movie that clearly understands that. I love listening to my family's dog stories - yes, they are funny, but they are also beautiful in that behind every word lies the thought impossible to shake... despite the feeling of loss that will inevitably occur, not one moment of those experiences would be traded in. I will forever be in awe of that courage.

--Michael Brendan, "Mad Dog" Film Reviews (www.maddogreviews.com)
[--- See Now! ---]by  
Mar 26, 2000
I really liked this movie. The acting was well done. The story was heart-warming. Good family show. Bring tissues.
Mar 31, 2001
"My Dog Skip" could've been another movie about World War Two, but this movie has little to do with war. "My Dog Skip" is a drama about the relationship between a boy and his dog, whose name is, you guess it Skip.

The film has captured the feeling of the homefront during WWII. Racial relations were discuss, included scenes of African-American children being seated in the balcony at the movies, while the whites were seated in the front of the screen.(Those scene reminded me of the 1962 classic "To Kill a Mockingbird," wherefore African-Americans were forced to seat in the balcony to watch one of their kind being tried for murder) The movie will also make viewers recalled their realionship with their pet.

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