Based on Jack London’s The Call of the Wild novel published in 1903, The Call of the Wild is a 2020 American adventure film that features 100 minutes of pure bliss and heart-warming family entertainment for people of all ages. A debut production for director Chris Sander is the company's first movie in its new brand, 20th Century Studios. Released on 21 st February 2020 in the United States, the film had mixed receptions and reviews from audiences worldwide based on the plot, themes, use of Hollywood stars like Harrison Ford, and computer-generated imagery (CGI) for the animals used. The movie can be described under the genres of adventure and drama where a large Saint Bernard dog, in size and heart, named Buck, is kidnapped from his home in California and sold to Yukon, where he is on the quest of discovering his purpose.
Set in the 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, Buck was seen as a tool amidst a generation of people hungry for gold and used any means available to get it, including John Thornton (Harrison Ford). An outdoorsman who is the eventual master of Buck before he finds his destiny in the wild, leading a pack of wolves and breeding new strains. Despite the movie's success in entertaining audiences and touching hearts, the budget amount used for production was too much compared to gross box office income, making it a bomb with the studio losing money estimated at between $50-100 million.
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Buck is portrayed as a naughty but clever dog living in Judge Miller's mansion in Santa Clara, California. Despite causing problems at his owner's mansion, he is loved by everyone, and this cheerful attitude is the initial depiction of the friendly character Buck. The latter is the main character of the movie. Unfortunately, Buck is kidnapped and shipped to Yukon, where in transit, Saint Bernard discovers just how mean and bad people can be as the crew beat him to enact discipline. Buck associates the club used to beat him with fear, punishment and despair. In Yukon, Buck is sold into slavery, and during transit to a dog shelter, he makes his first encounter with John Thornton, his eventual owner, where the dog returns the harmonica the outdoorsman dropped. From here, Buck is sold to a pair of mail delivery people, Perrault and Francoise, as a sled dog.
The task of delivering mail across Yukon's cold Alps was a new challenge for a naughty and domesticated Buck. But the crew believed in Buck and guided him, where he gained the trust of the delivery people and other sled dogs to a point where Buck enjoyed sledding and made the team deliver mail on time. However, the pack leader of the sled dog named Spitz was intimidated by Buck and waged war since there can only be one leader. This was Buck's first fight, but his sheer size, will, and vivid ancestral visions of a black wolf gave him victory taking the mantle as pack leader and Spitz scattering. Surmounting all obstacles and leading a pack delivering what Perrault termed as happiness and dreams, Buck finds a sense of purpose and belonging. Sadly, this was cut short with the mail delivery service being disbanded and telegraph technology replacing them, leading the sled dogs back to the shelter waiting to be sold to their next owner.
A mean-spirited man named Hal procured the dogs for gold prospecting, overworking and risking the lives of the dog. When Buck, who is the pack leader, becomes too tired to carry on with the painstaking endeavour, Hal threatens to shoot the dog but is stopped by Thornton, who rescues Buck and takes ownership of the dog. The pair take care of each other and find companionship in an otherwise cold place. Thornton is seen to be in despair and pain, struggling with a burden that seems unsurmountable. Buck notices this and aids the man back to his feet, and the two set out on an adventure to get gold. This was the final journey for both characters as Thornton discovers goals and through back overcomes the death of his sun. Buck also rescues a wolf from drowning and is initiated into a pack that he eventually leads. As Hal comes to seek revenge on Thornton for stealing his dog and the prospect of gold, the two fight with Thornton getting shot, but Buck comes to his rescue and kills Hal by overcoming the fear he had on the use of clubs as a form of torture and discipline. Thornton unfortunately dies but is at peace and instructs Buck to find purpose in his new home, whence Buck breeds and leads.
The director was bold and direct in translating Jack London's book into a modern rendition that contemporary audiences can relate to. The uncanny use of CGI to render the dogs is met with a lot of criticism by reviewers, which made the budget high. Still, in my opinion, it was the best way to capture the emotion, spirit and will of the animals used and their respective characters, especially Buck. The use of real animals in production would not have accurately captured what Chris Sanders was going for. Everything else was perfection, from writing, cameraman ship, music and lighting, where the production team ensured every theme employed came out clearly from adventure, family, companionship and comedy. The use of experienced actors like Harrison Ford and Omar Sy, who put in world-class performances, complemented the director and writers' message to bring out vitality and purpose in the main character.
These strengths make the movie stand out as a first project under the new name. The weakness was not in the film, but the budgeting for animation technology, making the studio lose money in the box office. Buck could understand what was being said to him and had human empathy and emotion in protecting his loved ones. By hiding alcohol to save Thornton and giving another dog his fish when the pack leader forcefully took it is a colloquial touch that made Buck a protagonist, we could all relate to and admire. The movie is very interesting in comical terms and adventure, showing the character grow from being a naïve domesticated animal to a purposeful and independent leader in the wild. I would recommend the movie to everyone since it is family-friendly, short, entertaining, heart-warming and filled with examples of lessons for people of all ages.
In conclusion, the movie is a seamless combination of laughter, legacy, purpose, adventure and computing technology. The transition from 20 th Century Fox to 20 th Century Studios was marked by thorough investment in a movie befitting all ages, cultures, races and religions. Despite having mixed reviews, the plot, themes and lessons learnt for The Call of the Wild are clear, concise and applicable to all. The movie is just the length and incorporates all literary devices to capture audiences and captivate them in the sequence of adventures and characters' growth in telling Jack London's story on American 19 th -century ending. It is a movie I would watch again and recommend to everyone who has a few hours to smile, laugh and learn.
