MAX
Directed by Boaz Yakin
Screenplay by Boaz Yakin and Sheldon Lettich
Starring: Lauren Graham; Thomas Haden Church; Josh Wiggins; Carlos
A dog, Max, that helped US Marines in Afghanistan returns to the U.S. and is adopted by his handler's family (mainly Justin played by Josh Wiggins) after suffering a traumatic experience.
Over 3000 dogs have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. 26 dogs and 25 handlers have died in the line of duty. Those numbers surprised me, so there is a story there to be told. Sadly this film only tells half the story.
The story of this dog is buried under a story about "gun running" into Mexico and some bad guys. The film comes across as a low budget TV film. However this cannot be on TV because it should not be PG, there is a lot of violence here with some dog fights, the film probably should be PG13. I just felt that the subject here did not need a plot added to it. I was interested in how this hero dog assimilates back to society. And how dogs can have Post Traumatic Stress and how is that handled. Sadly that is lost here. The script is just messy, with an odd story line and some strange cringe worthy lines. I was disappointed because I wanted to like it so much more because the subject has not been touched upon in film. Sad.
Well, there are some good moments to note:
All the actors do very well with the limited script including a very good newcomer Mia Xitlali as Justin's friend Carmen, she almost steals the movie. Also I have to note Carlos, the dog who plays Max is such a great actor!!
There is one nice scene I want to note, when fireworks are going off on 4th of July, it of course shakes Max up. Justin crawls up next to him and lays with him to keep him calm. I wanted more of that!!!
3 out of 5 stars for a just a little better than average movie. It may be worth a look when it hits home viewing.
From the shadows as always thanks for your time.
No comments:
Post a Comment