My Dog Skip Review
by Christian Pyle (tlcclp AT aol DOT com)April 9th, 2000
My Dog Skip
Reviewed by Christian Pyle
Directed by Jay Russell
Written by Gail Gilchriest (based on the book by Willie Morris) Starring Frankie Muniz, Diane Lane, Luke Wilson, and Kevin Bacon Grade: C+
"My Dog Skip" is based on the autobiographical tribute of journalist Willie Morris to his boyhood pet. Harry Connick Jr. proves the narrative voice of the elder Morris looking back nostalgically to a time when he lost his innocence in Yazoo, Mississippi, during World War II. Frankie Muniz, the star of TV's "Malcolm in the Middle," plays the nine-year-old Willie, a shy, small ch ld who is ostracized by his peers. His only friend is his teenage neighbor Dink Jenkins (Luke Wilson), a high school sports star who's just joined the service and is about to go overseas. Realizing that Willie will be lonely without Dink, Ellen Morris (Diane Lane) buys Willie a dog for his birthday against the wishes of her husband Jack (Kevin Bacon). Jack seems stern and the elder Morris tells us that Jack lost "a piece of his heart" in the Spanish Civil War along with a leg, but we learn that Jack resists the dog because it inevitably bring the pain of loss to Willie. Willie loves his Jack Russell terrier Skip (Enzo and Moose of TV's "Frasier") from the start, and Skip soon makes substantial improvements in Willie's life.
The bullies who torment him become his posse, and the prettiest girl in chool, Rivers Applewhite (Caitlin Wachs), starts to think he's hot stuff. There's a strong "Tom Sawyer" motif in this story. (Oddly, though, the director keeps showing us the cover of "Huckleberry Finn.") Like Tom, Willie is well-versed in tales of adventure and leads his friends into mock exploits. The bullies-turned-friends are a collective Huck Finn, and Rivers is Becky Thatcher. There are even some scary bootleggers who stand in for Injun Joe.
The Yazoo of "My Dog Skip" is misted over with the nostalgia common in memoirs of childhood created after many decades. (Witness, for example, Franco Zeffirelli's recreation of his youth in fascist Italy in "Tea with Musso ini.") This Yazoo is more realistic than Mayberry because it allows for the re lities of segregation and war, but it still rings false. Even worse, the sappy "Wonder Years"-style voiceover commentary robs crucial scenes of their sweetness by droning on and on about the significance of the events.
The saving grace of "Skip" are the performances of Frankie Muniz and Kevin Bacon. Muniz does a fine job approximating the accent and mannerisms of a boy in a small Southern town in the 1940's. Bacon gives the best performance of his career. When the Connick voiceover introduces Jack Morris, one expects him to be mean and abusive. However, Jack turns out to be a loving father, and Bacon reveals how the outward bitterness shields his sensitivity. He also manages well with the awkward gait of a one-legged character. Expect an Oscar nomination for Bacon.
Bottom Line: Strong performances keep "Skip" from drowning in its cloying nostalgia.
=A9 2000 Christian L. Pyle
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