- Actors: Doh Kyung-soo, Park So-dam
- Director: Oh Sung-yoon
- Format: Subtitled, Dolby, Surround Sound, Widescreen
- Language: English (DTS 5.1), Korean (DTS 5.1)
- Subtitles: English
- Region: Region A/1
- Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rated: Not RatedNR
- Studio: Well Go Usa
- Release Date: August 18, 2020
- Run Time: 102 minutes
There is a universality to animation which has
otherwise been lost since the arrival of sound in film. It doesn’t matter what
nation made the film when we are watching are constructed images; the common
act of amorphization often meaning there are even fewer ways of distinguishing culture,
and Disney long ago proved that cultural appropriation can be an effective
tool. With a quick redubbing by voice actors in each language, it can be easy
for an animated film to be accepted as essentially nationless. A Dog’s
Courage (translated as Underdog from the original South Korean title),
on the other hand, provides a narrative that is distinct in its representation
of a precise place, however universal the overlaying canine storyline may be.
This particular
story of dog companionship begins with a searing look at irresponsible pet
ownership, rivaling The Lion King (1994) as one of the saddest film openings
of all time. In fact, save a few exceptions, the humans represented in this
film are far from sympathetic in their treatment of man’s best friend. If you
can imagine the flip side of Oliver & Company (1988), it would be
this film. When Jacob is abandoned by his owner in the woods, he must discover
a way to survive on his own. Luckily, he quickly comes across a pack of stray
dogs who have all suffered the same fate as his own. Together, they evade an
evil dogcatcher while seeking out a place of peace for themselves.
In some essential ways, A Dog’s
Courage carries on that tradition of ambiguity, still dubbed seamlessly in
English from the original language, the narrative is distinctly Korean. What
makes this so unique, is that the North/South division, the Korean War, and the
DMZ play a major part in the plot of A Dog’s Courage, while none of
these things are directly referenced. Not only is it significant to the story
itself, but there are many thematic connections in the representations of
walls, borders, and the discovery of commonality with those on the other side of
them.
The first representation
of this is presented with the discovery of a fence that separates civilization
from the forest. When Jacob wanders into the woods, he finds that there are
wild dogs who survive by hunting. Though they are hesitant to trust each other,
circumstances force the two groups of canines together in a journey to find a
spot of freedom. This leads them to the only place they know of without humans,
and it happens to be the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. That
there still exist two villages existing peacefully in this area between warring
nations is a testament to the allegory central to the narrative. And it is because
of these themes that this South Korean film was also chosen to be screened in
North Korea as part of the South Korea-North Korea film exchange program.
A Dog’s Courage
has plenty of humor and an inevitable optimistic ending, but it is also filled
with far more intense sequences than most animated films. The tone is lighter,
but the stakes are not much different than Watership Down (1978). There is
a rather large group of dogs at the beginning of the journey, but younger
audiences may not be equipped to handle how many fewer there are by the end.
The Blu-ray
release of A Dog’s Courage doesn’t come with many extras, beyond the
English dubbing. The original Korean-language audio is also available. What
makes the Blu-ray worthwhile is the high definition presentation of the hand drawn
animation.
Entertainment Value:
7.5/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 7.5/10
Historical
Significance: 7/10
Special Features: 1/10
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