Linbeymusol Wonderful character development!

Redwarmin This movie is the proof that the world is becoming a sick and dumb place

AboveDeepBuggy Some things I liked some I did not.

Exoticalot People are voting emotionally.

Amy Adler Poor David (Dylan Provencher). His parents have died in a car accident in the States. With no other choice, he is sent to live with his only known relative, his grandfather Adam (James Cromwell) on the Isle of Man. Before David lands on the beautiful island in the Irish Sea, his grandfather has to be persuaded by the social services to let the boy stay with him, as Adam is a bitter, crusty recluse. However, things initially go well. Perhaps it is because David volunteers to help with the work almost the minute he arrives. This involves taking care of the farm, especially the herd of sheep. Yet, as David soon discovers, there is a sheepdog as testy as Adam, named Zack, who minds the sheep. One day, David makes the acquaintance of near neighbors, Maggie and her father Michael, but as soon as Adam finds out, he tells David not to see them again. There is, you see, a long-standing grievance between Adam and Michael. In addition, they are rivals in the island's annual sheepdog contest, where Maggie's dog Owd Bob is second only to Zack. David and Maggie continue to see each other on the sly. Soon, a crisis occurs. There are lambs turning up dead on the hills and the suspected killer is Zack, Adam's dog, though he vehemently denies it. Also, sadness arrives at Maggie's house and Zack wants to help but is forbidden. What will happen to all of the folks on this little speck of gorgeous land? This is a fine tale with a breathtaking setting which few will get to visit. The Isle of Man sits in the Irish Sea between England and Ireland and it will put your eye out with its beauty. Meanwhile, this is really a story of two dogs, Bob and Zack, and the quarreling families who own them. There is much screen time devoted to the problems of the humans, too. Cromwell is an exceptional actor and he repeats the farmer's role he had in Babe, only with no seeming warmth in his heart. Provencher, Colm Meany and all of the other cast members are quite fine, too. Be forewarned that tears are likely to gush forth at any viewing. But, for certain, get this film now, before you are OWD! Its wonderful.

jpgcne I just watched this movie on HBO and loved the story as well as the scenery. I can not understand how a person like remobec can go into extensive details on how things are wrong with this very nicely made film. You have to take it for what it is worth a very nice remake of an old remake of the original silent film and Novel as well.Do not pay attention to someone who bases his whole post on ripping apart a very nice and heart warming family film

remobec Alfred Ollivant wrote the book "Owd Bob, Son of Battle," an excellent dog story. This movie is the third or fourth retelling of it. They've basically butchered the book. This movie twisted up all of the characters and the story of Ollivant's book. This is not always bad, but I don't think it added anything to the story in this case.The dogs are central to this story. Although they are attractive Border Collies, many aspects of the dogs are very inaccurate. For example, one of the main plot lines of the story deals with a killer dog--a dog that kills sheep. In sheep country, a dog who kills sheep is totally unacceptable and would be shot immediately. I suppose in a rare case an owner may find out and try to hide it, but even this is very rare. These are working dogs, and a working dog can't be a sheep killer. It's an instant death warrant. Furthermore, these sheep killers get smart. If they kill a sheep and come home with blood on their face and fleece in their teeth they KNOW they'll be shot. They clean up. But the sheep killer in this movie keeps coming back to his owner with a bloody face, and his owner cleans him up, and keeps quiet. This movie totally ignores this basic fact.Furthermore, when the dogs are in the sheepherding competition, one of the dogs (not a main character) herds sheep excellently. But when the main character dogs begin their sheepherding, it's pathetic. The dog is just shown jumping up and down somewhere in the vicinity of the sheep. He doesn't even seem to realize the sheep are there. Border collies have VERY strong instincts, and if they are around sheep, even if they're movie dogs, the sheep should attract and hold their attention. But this dog doesn't even seem to care that sheep are there, which is very strange for a Border Collie. They could have at least dyed the coat of another dog and shown the dog actually herding. The herding of a good sheepdog is a beautiful sight, and this left me very disappointed.One last point on the dogs. The dog, Zac, is supposed to be aggressive and hate people. However, it only looks like he was cued by his trainer to jump up and bark. He doesn't give a terribly believable performance.Besides these, the story itself wasn't terrible, but I didn't feel like the characters were very realistic. There seemed to be a lot of emotions--crying, running, screaming. . . But I didn't feel like the characters were developed as well as they could be.All of this considered, it's not a bad family film. Good values, beautiful dogs, great scenery, okay plot. Perhaps worth seeing, perhaps worth buying if your as dog crazy as I am.

gmc-trish Saw the title in the local cable program guide and felt I had to check it out when I saw James Cromwell was featured. It's almost unfair to call this great film a family picture for fear of frightening away many potential viewers. Family fare that has not been dumbed down for a juvenile audience. Casting is spot on from top to bottom and scenes are truly beautiful. I shall visit my local video store in the morning to hopefully find Owd Bob on DVD and share it with my wife for our mutual enjoyment. I rate this an eight and ask, as have other reviewers, why don't films such as this receive the promotion they deserve?