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A Dog’s Purpose: From a The Cat Lover’s Perspective
By Sandra Olmsted
Clearly, director Lasse Hallström loves dogs as evidenced by his making both A Dog’s Purpose and Hachi: A Dog’s Tale (2009). Despite the animal rights controversy about Hallström most recent dog film, both films honor the way dogs uphold their relationship with mankind. Both films also show how mankind often asks too much of dogs or doesn’t honor the relationship. The same is true of the relationship between mankind and any domesticated animal, and that’s why this cat lover needed a box of tissues to get through A Dog’s Purpose.
The main story is about the relationship between Bailey, the dog (voice of Josh Gad throughout), finds a boy, Ethan (Bryce Gheisar), to love and stays by his side until he is a man. Bailey, who had a few lives before becoming Ethan’s dog, and had a few others after being Ethan’s dog, reincarnates into many lives, all of which illustrate the role that dogs play in human society. From disposable to beloved friends and family members and everything in-between, the dogs in Hallström’s A Dog’s Purpose valiantly uphold their end of the deal. Humans don’t always. Hallström’s also leads philosophical air to his film because, the essence or soul or spirit of the dog who becomes Bailey, wonders from the very beginning of his cycle of reincarnation about the meaning of life and the purpose of his existence. The film stretches over decades and characters age and are played by multiple actors.
As Ethan’s Bailey, the dog stands with his pack through some good times and bad. The worst being teenaged Ethan (K.J. Apa) loosing a full ride scholarship after a house fire. Ethan’s depression cause him to send the love of his love, Hannah (Peggy Lipton), away. The dog moves on to a new existence as a police German Shepherd whose handler is Carlos (John Ortiz), and the dog proves he is a hero. This is the part of the film that animal rights groups are objecting to because the dog is involved in a water rescue and German Shepherds are not big fans of water and according to a YouTube video, a German Shepherd was forced into the water for the scene. In the film, the dog doesn’t seem to be afraid or in much danger as evidenced by underwater shots of the dog and the rescued child. The Shepherd also saves the life of Carlos.
In another life, he dog is a short-legged Corgi mix who becomes the only friend of lonely college student Maya (Kirby Howell-Baptiste). The Corgi’s desire for an impossible relationship with much bigger dog leads to happiness for Maya when she meets the other dog’s owner, Albert (Pooch Hall). The Corgi lives a long, happy life with this much larger dog friend and Maya’s happy family.
Through all these other lives, the dog, however, longs to return to Ethan, who by now is much older and whose heart has hardened. Eventually, this Ethan (Dennis Quaid) decides to keep the dog and names him Buddy. Buddy discovers that Hannah (Peggy Lipton) is back in town, and does what any good dog would do. Buddy has one other wish —that Ethan would recognize him as Bailey. The acting is strong, the message powerful, and the all stories well directed. The camera often takes the point of view of the dog so that the audience gets to see the world from the perspective of the dog. Amidst the sadness of living any and many lives, there are moments of humor such as a cat, who, according to Bailey, is upset at not being a dog.
Even though this cat lover has never had the kinds of relationships with a dog, which Hallström portrays, the cat lover has had memorable ones with cats and other animals. The universal nature of the core story about how much pets play important and meaningful roles in our lives cannot be over looked. Some say animals are angels here for us, and Hallström asks us to consider how humans treat those angels.
I cried at this film because the ideas and themes echoed in my relationships with animals other than dogs, and most people will hopefully look beyond the controversy about the making of the film and see the intent of Hallström’s message. A Universal Pictures release, A Dog’s Purpose is rated PG for thematic elements and some peril, runs a well-paced 120 minutes, and is in theaters now.
