Dog Gone, one of the newest movies to hit the Netflix platform released on January 13th and has since gained a 76% on Rotten Tomatoes. Including a big-name actor Rob Lowe from The Outsiders, Dog Gone came onto Netflix with a quiet release and kept that impression throughout the rest of the movie.

It was based on the true story of the 1998 search and adapted from the novel Dog Gone: A Lost Pet’s Extraordinary Journey and the Family Who Brought Him Home; by Pauls Toutonghi.

It follows Feilding, a newly graduated college student trying to navigate the world after not caring much about his future during the past four years. And who’s better to do that with than Gonker, a mixed Golden Retriever he adopted from a local pound?

In the movie, the reason for getting Gonker was because Feilding’s girlfriend had broken up with him, but in real life, it was actually a close one that had passed away. Differences like these between the movie and the book made me lower my liking of the movie.  Along with other readers, the unnecessary changes that were made for the movie didn’t make sense to me.

The movie focused on the loving father and son reconciliation, but it had an issue with the speed of the movie. The main climax of the movie definitely picked up the storyline, where Gonker goes missing after chasing after a fox, only having 23 days to be found and saved from his life-threatening illness, Addison’s Disease.

Dog Gone followed almost the same storyline/plot as any other dog movie, leaving it unoriginal and slightly boring.  The only original thing about this film was the true story it was based on.

Although, it did include a heartwarming storyline of a lost dog and the impact it has on the Marshall family and people from all around the world. 

What I did love about Dog Gone was the whole storyline for the search for Gonker. We also see the reconciliation between Feilding and his father, Feilding wanting to have a more carefree life while going against his father’s expectations and vision of him getting a job. 

Another thing I really liked about the movie was the relatability it has, many people finding the relationship between Feilding and his father to be similar to their own situations. 

I love how the movie included a happy ending and its focus on the healing of a son and father’s relationship, but I wish it could have been better than having the purpose to play in the background.

7.5/10