The Call of the Wild 4K 2020 Ultra HD 2160p

Story Movie

The story of Buck, a friendly dog whose measured domestic life was turned upside down during the gold rush in the 1880s, when he was torn out of his home in California and transported to wild and cold Alaska. As a newcomer to the postal service team, and subsequently a leader, Buck finds himself in an incredible adventure, finds his place in the world and becomes the master of his life.

Review 4K Movie

On February 20, the premiere of the film "Call of the Ancestors", filmed based on the eponymous novel by Jack London, took place. And this is the case when the expectation may not coincide with reality. Now I’ll try to explain and sort things out.

This is the story of a dog named Beck, who lived in the South in a large estate of Millerov and, like the Buddha before the Enlightenment, enjoyed the blessings of life, delicious food, was enveloped in the love and care of the owners, not knowing the calamities, hunger, transience of existence. But everything changes in an instant, and Beck finds himself in the North, works in a team with other dogs, carries mail during the gold rush, eventually finding a home.

It is worth noting from the very beginning that the age limit of the film is 6+, and this, quite a bit, says it all, although some scenes of the film will make it doubtful that it is aimed at a children's audience. But now a little about the story.

Who else but Jack London comes to mind when it comes to the gold rush. In his works, human frenzy and the desire to get rich at any cost are described with such penetration, naturalism and mortal severity that it becomes unbearable for an adult to read where the children are. And by the way, who said that “Call of the Ancestors” refers to children's literature? I have never understood and shared this opinion. So the child’s psyche can be injured, especially when it comes to the saint - dogs, and animals in general.

Director Chris Sanders (by the way, the film “How to Train Your Dragon”, “The Croods Family”, Lilo and Stitch “- this is his director’s business”) did not follow J. London and completely retell the story about Beck's difficult, depressing fate. Because the film turned out to be easy, comical, but without dramatic moments, of course, it could not do.

As befits modern cinema, there is a hero and an antihero in the film - a person is not frost, not violence, not longing, fatigue and hunger are people. And this is normal, otherwise it would be boring to watch, especially for children, because good should always overcome evil and do it as spectacularly as possible. Although it was a bit short of spectacularity here, but more on that later. In general, we can say that this is a cute, non-violent film, or even a cartoon, for a cozy family viewing.

Why cartoon? Yes, because the graphics are cool! All animals were drawn using motion capture technology, and it’s done so cool that you can’t distinguish it from living ones, however, you can’t surprise a modern audience with realistic graphics, because it is always and everywhere. Beka was performed by Terry Notari, a master of his craft and a great pro in portraying mythical creatures and various animals, based on his movements, characters from such films as Avatar, Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and Tintin's Adventures: The Secret of the Unicorn were animated. And the people were played by Harrison Ford, here he was in the role of the depressing drunkard John Thornton, Omar Sea and Kara Guy as the postmen Perrault and Francoise, the evil Hal was played by Dan Stevens, and the judge Miller was Bradley Whitford.

As I said, the cruelty in the film is minimal, on the one hand it’s good, on the other hand, there’s not enough action. Those who are familiar with the story of J. London, sitting in the cinema, will expect a ra-ta-ta-ta weapon, a baffle-bust-bang, a baton and a whack-and-whip of a whip, and if this is still in slow motion, then generally an explosion brain, and not a single action movie with the "Call" can be compared. But ... no, Sanders loves animals and people, and he does not call on spectators to violence either. M-yes, what in the end J. London turned out to be a bloodthirsty flayer, oh well.

An interesting directorial decision is to find the image of Beck's wild ancestor in the guise of a majestic night-color wolf and a neon-amber look. He forces not only Beck to follow, but also the audience, awakening the beast that in ancient times lived in the wild, was free and not humanized. And it is beautiful, exciting, and you are waiting for him to return and fill us with faith in his own, seemingly unlimited forces.

Sitting in the cinema and again recalling the age limit of 6+, I involuntarily wondered why the scene of drinking alcohol is acceptable, if everything else is not. There was no answer, but although the film does not directly say that the dogs forced to carry the heavy load over long distances were not really having fun, this is hinted at by the blood-red color of six Beck around the neck, he and this tells us that the patterns of a working postman dog are rubbed, crushed, and stung to blood, and the coat doesn’t change color even after Beck regains Thornton’s home and love, pointing to his past life and hard labor that left an imprint forever in the soul of a dog. The director speaks about this without words, and this is wonderful.