This has been a very good year for dog movies (and Kleenex due to all the money they have probably made from their product wiping tears clear due to these films). One such film happens to be the sequel to the film “A Dog’s Purpose”, aptly titled “A Dog’s Journey”. The sequel is based on the novel by W. Bruce Campbell which focuses on the continued adventures of Bailey and his owner Ethan. This is the second adaptation of one of Campbell’s books this year, the first being “A Dog’s Way Home”.
The sequel follows Ethan, his wife Hannah, and his dog Bailey as they try and help their daughter-in-law Gloria and granddaughter CJ by letting them stay at their home and helping watching CJ. Gloria is the widow of Hannah’s son and isn’t in the right state of mind to raise a child. When Ethan and Hannah offer to look after CJ while Gloria tries to get her life back together, she thinks their gesture is a way of getting CJ and the insurance money CJ was left by her father. As time goes on and Bailey grows older, Ethan tasks him with an important job of protecting CJ when he returns as another dog. So, Bailey is given a new purpose as he journeys to find and protect CJ through his many lives as new dogs.
Some people will consider this to be an overly sentimental sop fest, and it is, but it also works as such. “A Dog’s Journey” pulls all the right heart strings if you have ever loved a dog who has passed away. While perhaps not as effective if you have never had a dog, it still should leave you holding back the tears regardless. Still, as much I love dogs, parts of the film felt one step above a Lifetime original movie.
There were things I can nitpick about the movie and some of the issues were bigger than others. Being a guy, I wasn’t a huge fan of how the film depicted men. It wasn’t meaning to, but the film sort of depicted a majority of men as evil (which didn’t help it’s Lifetime movie vibe). The movie really hammered in a lot of the foreshadowing as well which diminished the emotional impact of the revelations. The film also seems to really have hard depicting the passage of time. Some actors are given age makeup while others are not and the film seems to imply that technology and styles won’t change over the course of around twenty to thirty years. It’s a little complaint but for someone detail oriented, it’s a little distracting.
The film has done okay but hasn’t caught the box office by storm either and it will be unlikely to make what the first film made. Perhaps it has to do with competition or maybe it is due to the controversy surrounding the first movie. Regardless of the reasons it hasn’t made as much, the sequel is an overall worthy follow up to it’s predecessor.
The film sees Dennis Quaid reprise his role as Ethan from the first film. Josh Gad also returns as the voice of Bailey. Marg Helgenberger replaces Peggy Lipton as Hannah from the first film. Unfortunately, Peggy Lipton tragically passed away shortly before the film was released. Part of the film is set in Michigan which is where I’m from so the film gets extra bonus points from me.
“A Dog’s Journey” proves to be a fitting but sad ending to the story of Bailey the dog. For anyone who has had a four legged friend who crossed over the rainbow bridge, this film will hit extra hard. This film and it’s predecessor show the importance of friendship and the bonds we form with our furry companions.
Grade: B
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