The Call Of the Wild

Just imagine you just got out of a group picture with attendees for your party and you all head to the table that was filled with scrumptious meals the last time you saw it. Only to return and find it was…gone!

In its place lay wreckage and evidence of one creature only. A dog. And that dog happens to be your pet. What would you do?

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Over here in Nigeria, that dog would be facing some very serious punishment [literally] but Buck, the said dog, only got to lay outside. He slept on the porch as punishment. Talk about spoiled.

I first came across this movie some weeks ago. Saw clips of it and wanted to watch it. But I never really got around that until yesterday.

Buck is a big dog. In more words, he is a ‘gentle mix of Saint Benard and Scotch Shepherd’. In the big mansion of Judge Miller, he was spoiled and quite frankly, my brows dipped in annoyance once or twice at his behavior.

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However, I was angry for a whole different reason when Buck is torn away from his home and finds himself with an abusive man in a red sweater. I believe in discipline and not abuse. Buck is an intelligent dog and he stands down when he sees how important it is that he does.

Buck soon finds himself in Alaska [one of the many places I hope to visit someday] being a sled dog. Of course, for a big dog with no experience, this guy was quite the piece of work. And it gets better when Spitz decides he doesn’t like the guy.

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Spitz is the leader of the pack [owned by Perrault and Francois who deliver mail] and quite frankly, I did not like him. He exhibited pure tyrannical and zero leader behavior which made my nose scrunch in disgust. We can learn a lot from Spitz. And I mean, do the opposite of what he would do.

Now Buck, had been seeing his inner animal. Coming into this wild place only seemed to amplify his…visions? Well, they were pretty vivid so I doubt they were just visions. On one particular night when Spitz thought to put Buck in his place, he received the rudest shock of his life.

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He only seemed to awake Buck’s inner animal and well, you know how it goes from there. The next morning, Buck is leading the Sled and is diving head first into danger. Sometimes, it is all good to trust our instinct.

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Perrault and Francois never seemed to be on time with the mail delivery. Buck changed that after he won them over by saving Francois from literal death. You know that saying, ‘A dog is Man’s best friend?’ Yeah. Buck is a typical example.

Fast forward and Buck is once again ripped away from his home and left with the responsibility to herd his Pack...

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...and that is where he meets this guy, Hal.

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There is something about destiny that we can not deny though. When it comes, all forces in the universe bends and tilts till it comes to pass.

Hal is the typical definition of mean and conceited; likes to hear his own voice and very full of himself. People who can’t take corrections or accept that someone is more knowledgeable. That was Hal. And his destructive trait and greedy love for gold drove him into putting himself, sister, brother-in-law and the dogs in danger.

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He was advised by John, another character who had taken a liking to Buck, to not go through the path he wanted because it was unstable and could put everyone in harms way. Hal, however, took it that John did not want him finding his gold and conveniently ignored that advice.

Now, I said destiny is a very cunning thing. We move a few moments later to find that the dog pack is ripped apart and Buck is taken in by John. John then decided to take Buck on an adventure. What do they find?

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The Call of the Wild is a pretty movie produced in the year 2020 which I read is based off a book. It stars Harrison Ford [John Thorton], Oma Sy [Perrault], Cara Gee [Francoise], Dan Stevens [Hal], Karen Gillan [Mercedes] and Bradley Whitford [Judge Miller].

I give this movie a 9/10. Not once did I cringe like I did with some movies this year. Instead, I found myself sucked in to this world designed to lure Buck out of his comfort and hurl him deep into trials made to mold him. For more than one reason, I find the whole thing realistic. Why? Watch to find out.