This tale of a man and his dog uses that age-old voice over for the internal dialogue of the canine trick with a bit of a switch by having the voice be female (in this case by Bryce Dallas Howard). The animals are all undeniably cute and easy to sympathise with even the computer generate ones.
Through circumstance Bella (the dog) has to leave town to avoid running afoul of the local dog catcher (John Cassini) and ends up hundreds of miles from home. This leads to a long journey back where Bella learns about life on the road and befriends a baby cougar amongst other adventures.
She lives through numerous perils as she is hunted by a pack of wild dogs and trying to survive in the wilderness. The film also makes a number of worthwhile comments along the way on topics as diverse as the homeless and military veterans and their difficulty returning to normal life after service.
Try as it might, A Dog’s Way Home tries for epic but ends up a bit average. It’s too by the numbers and also suffers from a less than convincing close. It does however have a lot of cute animal moments and a storyline that does illicit a tear or two of emotional response.
Rob Hudson
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