Red Dog (2011); drama comedy film review

United Kingdom poster artwork for the drama comedy film Red Dog.

Wandering Wonder by Linh

Red Dog is an Australian film that captures the beauty of the Western Australian landscape, encompasses the quirkiness of Australian culture and depicts a strong sense of community spirit in regional and remote towns. Director Kriv Stenders (The Illustrated Family Doctor, Lucky Country) brings a charming and crowd-pleasing adaptation of Louis de Bernières’s novel to audiences. Red Dog is based on the true story of a legendary red cloud kelpie whose travels across Western Australia’s Pilbara region during the 1970s became legendary. After Red Dog’s death, a statue bearing his likeness was erected in Dampier, Western Australia, by his many friends whom he met on his travels. The majority of the characters in the film and the novel are fictional but this does not affect the story.

PILBARA PALS: Red Dog (Koko) and John (Josh Lucas) become close companions in the film Red Dog. Image: Roadshow Films.

The film is told in flashbacks and begins with a visiting truck driver named Tom (Luke Ford) who arrives at the local pub, where he is met with sad and forlorn faces. The publican Jack (Noah Taylor) starts telling Tom about Red Dog (Koko). Tom soon finds out Red Dog has been poisoned and seriously ill, with the vet on his way. As Tom listens to the different stories from the locals including Vanno (Arthur Angel), Jocko (Rohan Nichol) and Peeto (John Batchelor), he begins to understand Red Dog is no ordinary dog, but he is considered a friend to everyone in the community.

Red Dog is explicitly Australian in its depiction of the humour, colloquialisms, multi-culturalism and mateship in the community. The scenes of miners from different ethnicities working side by side in the outback heat and sharing laughs provide some of the comedy in the film. Another Australian cultural trait is the love of betting on anything, as seen when the miners are all betting to see how fast Red Dog can eat a can of dog food, and when Jack hollers “Place your bets! Red Dog and Red Cat are at it.” The Australian tradition of shortening names then adding the letter ‘o’ or sometimes the letter ‘y’ to the end of people’s names is also apparent and demonstrates a friendly and laid-back attitude to addressing friends and colleagues.

DRIVER'S DOG: Red Dog (Koko) insists on sitting on the bus behind John (Josh Lucas) in the film Red Dog. Image: Roadshow Films.

The cast is excellent and Josh Lucas (The Lincoln Lawyer, Big Sur) is affable as the American bus driver John who never manages to stay in one place for more than two years. Red Dog chooses John as his master and never leaves his side; Rachael Taylor (Transformers, The Loft) is lovely as Nancy the secretary who holds her own among the all-male mining team; John Batchelor is superb as Peeto, the big, burly, bearded softie at heart who likes to set things right by giving wrong-doers an “ed-u-cation”; Arthur Angel’s homesick then lovesick Vanno is hilarious and at times goofy; keep an eye out for the late Australian acting legend Bill Hunter (The Wedding Party, The Cup) as a local at the pub. His final film role before he passed away was in The Cup as horse-trainer extraordinaire Bart Cummings.

HEROIC HOUND: Nancy (Rachel Taylor) is proud of Red Dog who is a friend and hero to residents of Dampier in the film Red Dog. Image: Roadshow Films.

Cinematographer Geoffrey Hall (Chopper, Dirty Deeds) beautifully filmed the dusty plains, the dry arid bushland and the dusk/dawn scenes. His photography is complemented by composer Cezary Skubiszewski’s score and a ripsnorting soundtrack. Red Dog is already a favourite with Australian audiences and won the Best Film Award at the inaugural AACTA (Australian Academy of Cinema and Television Arts) Awards in 2012. Sadly, seven year old Koko who played Red Dog in the film died in Perth after a battle with congestive heart disease in 2012.

COMMUNITY'S CANINE: The town stands united for Red Dog and supports his right to be a member of the community in the film Red Dog. Image: Roadshow Films.

Director: Kriv Stenders

Writers: Daniel Taplitz (screenplay), Louis de Bernières (book)

Cast: Josh Lucas, Rachael Taylor, Koko, Noah Taylor, Luke Ford, Arthur Angel, John Batchelor, Rohan Nichol, Bill Hunter, Keisha Castle-Hughes, Leone Carmen, Eamon Farren, Tiffany Lyndall-Knight, Brett Heath, John Leary, Costa Ronin, Shingo Usami, Neil Pigot, Yure Covich

Producers: Nelson Woss, Su Armstrong, Marc Van Buuren, Aaron Ryder, Julie Ryan

Cinematographer: Geoffrey Hall

Original Music Composer: Cezary Skubiszewski

Film Editor: Jill Bilcock

Production: Ian Gracie (Production Designer), Tuesday Stone (Art Director), Rebecca Cohen (Set Decorator)

Costume Designer: Marriott Kerr

Running Time: 1 hour and 32 minutes