Dog (2002)

Director:

Suzie Templeton

Writer:

Suzie Templeton (writer)

Genre:

Short | Animation

Plot:

A young boy and his father live in a dull, lonely house with the shadow of mourning hanging over them both...

Plot Keywords:

Father Son Relationship | Euthanasia | Loss Of Mother | Animal In Title | One Word Title

Awards:

Won BAFTA Film Award. Another 9 wins & 1 nomination

Cast

  (Credited cast)

Tony Fish
Joshua O'Keefe

Runtime:

UK:5 min

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Company:

Royal College of Art

The film looked amazing...too bad the story is such a downer.

When you see the film, you can't help but notice the amazing stop-motion puppets that were used to make DOG. They looked very realistic but also rather creepy because they were so realistic. This is heightened by the ultra-realistic and bleak story.

The film begins with a boy and his father mourning the loss of the mother. While it's never overtly said, it becomes evident later that the father is not only mourning but has Agoraphobia--the paralyzing fear of leaving his home for any reason. The little boy seems depressed. Later, the family dog appears to be dying outside and the father is almost helpless--only grabbing the dog by stretching from the door frame--keeping at least part of his body in the house due to his fear. The dog is obviously sick and probably dying, but because the man cannot let himself leave the home to get help for the animal, he kills it with his bare hands. At that moment, he looks up to see that his son probably witnessed this!! This is truly awful!

Overall, great animations and a horrific and disturbing story I hope never to see again.