I watched the movie “The Call of the Wild” this past weekend. It is a beautiful movie about a good-hearted dog that experiences quite a bit in a short amount of time, that is, until he finally finds his place in the world. 

The movie has stunning scenery that makes anyone who watches fall in love with Canada’s Yukon territory.  The movie itself is based off the book The Call of the Wild, written by Jack London in 1903. The novel was then made into a movie and was released in the United States in February 2020, by 20th Century Studios (its first film under the company’s current name). 

The good-natured dog, Buck, is abducted from a loving home in California and shipped to the Yukon aboard a freighter. During the packing, Buck finds his favorite chew toy but loses his collar in the process due to it loosely falling off and sliding out of the truck. During the voyage, a crew member beats him as a means of discipline.

Once the destination is reached, where he is purchased in order to become a sled dog that helps Perrault (Omar Sy) and Francoise (Cara Gee) deliver mail all throughout Alaska during the Gold Rush. Things change when Buck is without work but finds a friend John Thorntorn (Harrison Ford), with whom Buck goes on an adventure with to find the place John Thornton’s son wanted to find. This ends up being the journey where Buck finds his calling.  

In my opinion, the actors and actresses did an overall good job in their roles. I especially believe that Sy and Gee were perfect as polar opposites.  Sy’s character is the optimistic nice guy, and Gee’s is the more pessimistic character who learns to be more positive. Ford’s acting in this movie is also well done and he’s good at making the audience feel what he feels inside. Lastly, there is the character, Buck. Buck is not played by a real dog, he is computer generated. But, I do love how the animators enabled Buck to feel the same emotions as humans, which makes him more relatable.

This is a watch-worthy movie because it’s a movie about life and finding one’s calling, or overall purpose in life. The theme, which is certainly fitting, deals specifically with a universal struggle that most people deal with throughout their lives; they doubt their purpose in the world. This movie teaches viewers that it is possible  to find one’s purpose, one’s calling, and although it might not be what one first thought, it is possible to find.

The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) gave this movie a PG rating.

Although the journey was long, like many people and sometimes animals too; Buck found his way. This is a beautiful movie about life that has an understandable theme and I recommend this movie to anyone, but bring the Kleenex.