Dog
Two troubled beings – a man and a dog – head from Oregon to Arizona on a mission of self-preservation.
The power of the canine: Channing Tatum and Lulu
Some titles don’t mess about. Dog is, indeed, about a dog, in particular a Belgian Malinois, trained for battle in Afghanistan. But Lulu, our eponymous pooch, has suffered trauma while in action and is not the dog she used to be. Also suffering from the after effects of combat is US Army Ranger Jackson Briggs (Channing Tatum) who, due to his unsuitability for the military, has been reduced to working in a fast-food joint. However, having undergone a series of tests and circumnavigated a bundle of red tape, Briggs is just one step away from re-joining his regiment. In order to rubber stamp his mental fitness, his captain asks him to do a favour: to transport Lulu 1,500 miles to the funeral in Arizona of her military trainer, Riley. Backed into a corner, Briggs has little choice but to concede and so sets off on a road trip with the muzzled, highly volatile dog.
Considering the issues that Dog is dealing with, such as war, rehabilitation and PTSD, it seems strange to market the film as a family-friendly comedy. It is certainly not Marley & Me, being a bonding drama of man and beast with a variety of absorbing excursions along the way. The path is carved out in advance, but the distractions are unpredictable and inevitably we come to care for Briggs and his capricious companion.
Lulu was actually the name of Tatum’s own recently deceased dog – to whom the film is dedicated – and the actor makes his directorial debut alongside his producing partner Reid Carolin. Dog is never sentimental, and is ultimately quite affecting, as both man and animal, trapped in the cruel, unbending protocol of the military machine, are damaged beings struggling to get along. Unlike other entries in the canine canon, from A Dog’s Purpose to Clifford the Big Red Dog, or even the recent documentaries Stray and Pariah Dog, it sheds a fresh light on the plight of the military mutt that lays down its life for the sake of its human handlers. It’s a competently directed effort – Tatum is obviously not just a pretty face – but is neither distinctive nor quite compelling enough to become a canine classic.
JAMES CAMERON-WILSON
Cast: Channing Tatum, Jane Adams, Kevin Nash, Q'orianka Kilcher, Ethan Suplee, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Nicole LaLiberte, Aqueela Zoll, Mark Burnham.
Dir Reid Carolin and Channing Tatum, Pro Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin, Peter Kiernan, Gregory Jacobs and Brett Rodriguez, Screenplay Reid Carolin, Ph Newton Thomas Sigel, Pro Des Laurence Bennett, Ed Leslie Jones, Music Thomas Newman, Sound Jeffrey Sawyer.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Free Association/FilmNation Entertainment-Entertainment Film Distributors.
101 mins. USA. 2021. UK and US Rel: 18 February 2022. Cert. 12A.
