Movie Info

RATING:

PG for mild crude humor

RELEASE:

January 18, 2002

TIME:

85 minutes

STARRING:

Cuba Gooding, Jr., James Coburn, Joanna Bacalso, Nichelle Nichols, M. Emmet Walsh, Brian Doyle Murphy, & Graham Greene

DIRECTOR:

Brian Levant

DISTRIBUTOR:

Walt Disney/Buena Vista Pictures

GENRE:

Comedy

 

Please Note

In providing movie reviews on our site, CBN.com is not endorsing or recommending films we review. Our goal is to provide Christians with information about the latest movies, both the good and the bad, so that our readers may make an informed decision as to whether or not films are appropriate for them and their families.

MOVIE REVIEW

Snow Dogs

By Lisa and Brandon Rice,
Movieguide Magazine

What's This?

CBN.com - Ted Brooks (Cuba Gooding Jr.) is a likeable, popular Miami dentist who took over his deceased fathers thriving practice and is now enjoying his life as a successful single professional in one of the warmest cities in America. The only aspects of his life that mystify him are his propensity to get sick at the slightest provocation and the tendency to have a few other unusual ticks and tastes that dont seem to run in his family. He especially does not like dogs.

One day Brooks gets a letter informing him that he has inherited something from a lady named Lucy, a deceased woman in Alaska. Appalled, Teds mom apologetically informs him that he was adopted and that Lucy is his real mother. Surprised and intrigued, Ted takes off for Alaska and heads to the tavern where his mother worked for the reading of her will. His mother has left her coat to a young gal named Barb (Joanna Bacalso), the gorgeous but gruff-and-gutsy bartender/owner, and her outhouse to a crusty, intimidating old man whom the town calls "Thunder Jack," (James Coburn) because he was once struck by thunder. All the rest of Lucys possessions are left to Ted, including a beautiful, but rambunctious dogsled team.

Ted scouts out his mothers cabin and is sad and a little angry that he never knew her. He is amazed that she has almost no worldly possessions, and he is about to leave when he is playfully assaulted by eight "snow dogs" Ted makes several hilarious attempts to control the unwieldy canines but becomes increasingly frustrated. Seeing the discomfort of the appalled city slicker, Thunder Jack offers to purchase the entire team for $200. Though the team is worth thousands, Ted is ready to agree and is heading out of town when Barb tells him that Thunder Jack is his father!

Being a black man, Ted doesnt believe that a crusty white guy could really be his dad, but he decides to stay and find out the truth. When he confronts "Thunder," really named James Johnson, he is told, "Thats ancient history. You dont belong here." (Just what every son wants to hear from a father.) Thunder tells Ted that there was a one-night-stand in a cave and that was it, no parental involvement at all, just a smart decision to give him a better home.

Ted continues to push the matter, and shouting soon ensues. They try to out-scream each other with, "Youve got something wrong in your head!" Hurt and angry, Ted is now even more resolved to stay and master dog sledding, just to prove himself to this estranged father and prevent him from getting the dogs.

Again, Teds attempts are hilarious. He falls through the ice, crying, "Help me, Lord!", he tangles with a skunk, he loses battles of the wit with one of the dogs named Demon (voiced by Jim Belushi), and he generally makes a fool of himself to the amusement of the whole town. He has a dream one night that he is back in warm Miami and the whole dogsled team is sunning in lounge chairs, talking to him and making fun of him (compliments of Jim Hensons animatronics team).

Giving up again, he heads back to Miami and his dental practice. His adoptive mother comes over one night as Ted is dressed in fur with the air conditioning on full blast, watching the Alaskan sledding races begin. The mom accidentally drops a framed photo of Lucy, only to find another photo underneath. This one reveals the truth.

Ted high-tails it back to Alaska, determined to confront his father again and find the rest of the REAL story. To complicate matters, the great "Arctic Challenge" has begun, and Thunder is missing. Ted must decide if his city-boy background and determination, along with the help of a wild, but loyal dog team, will be enough to navigate the stormy race and find and rescue his father. Can he muster the strength to return good for evil, despite the fact that there may be no emotional payoff? Furthermore, will he land a real relationship with the pretty bartender, whose crush might be turned to commitment?

Snow Dogs is cute, funny and acceptable for all except very young children, who may be frightened by the dangers of the adventure or lost in the more adult themes. My first-grade son, however, laughed out loud during much of the movie and was never bored. His only regret was that the "talking animals" part was very short just a brief dream sequence. (His other regret was that his mom doesnt take him away from Math every week to review a movie!)

The acting and production values, including Hensons animatronics team, are top-notch, and the mix of humor and drama is just right.

Snow Dogs was a good, moral, even biblical, movie. Ted cries out to God for rescue, and his adoptive mother tells him that she survived a plane ride only through 14 hours of prayer. His mother confesses her fear of telling the truth and her regret that she hadnt been more truthful, and Thunder says at one point, "A man who doesnt tell it like it is, is a liar, and I hate liars." Cool. So does God. Genuine heart issues are revealed, and the movie beautifully portrays the redemption that comes to those who fight for their freedom through truth.

The thematic elements of Snow Dog were incredible all around. Just as in Hearts in Atlantis, Life as a House, My First Mister, and even comedies like Corky Romano, this movie shouts: Children need good fathers! This whole movie was the quest of a grown-up child to get the love and affirmation of a distant father.

Though Hollywood has just discovered this issue, the Bible has been talking about it all along. Scripture tells us that "In the last days, I will turn the hearts of the fathers back to the children." Oh, Lord, may it be so! There is no element more crucial to a childs understanding of God than a loving relationship with an involved father. Fathers draw their sons and daughters into life, and when the father is absent, physically or emotionally, even adult children continue to suffer greatly.

For great reading on the all-important father issue, we recommend Jack Frosts ministry tapes and books, as well as the book Transformation of the Inner Man by John and Paula Sandford. (It is important to note that the adoptive father in Snow Dogs was portrayed as a wonderful, smart, involved dad who continually spoke life and a future to his son. Way to go!)

In short, do enjoy a great family outing to Snow Dogs, but be sure to remind your children that you cant get struck by thunder!

Please address your comments to:

Michael Eisner, Chairman/CEO
The Walt Disney Company
(Buena Vista, Caravan, Hollywood, Miramax, & Touchstone Pictures)
Dick Cook
Walt Disney Studios
500 South Buena Vista Street
Burbank, CA 91521
(818) 560-1000
Website: www.disney.com

The previous reviews are a selected sample of informative reviews from MOVIEGUIDE: A FAMILY GUIDE TO MOVIES AND ENTERTAINMENT, a syndicated feature of Good News Communications, Inc. To subscribe to MOVIEGUIDE, which includes a complete set of at least 10 reviews of the latest movies as well as many informative articles, please visit their Web site at http://www.movieguide.org/, or write or call:

MOVIEGUIDE
P.O. Box 190010
Atlanta, GA 31119
(800) 899-6684

DISCLAIMER: "The publications that carry MOVIEGUIDE and the organizations that distribute MOVIEGUIDE are not responsible for these reviews, nor is MOVIEGUIDE responsible for the opinions and positions of those publications and organizations."