If you haven’t seen Lassie, the movie featuring the ever impressive Peter O’Toole, you have missed one of the greatest dog movies ever made. Really! Rent it, buy it, but see it! You’ll be glad you did! This is not a remake of the original Lassie or the much loved TV series; this Lassie goes beyond either one to show Lassie as a timeless heroine who supercedes class and poverty.

Okay, I’m a little slow to see things sometimes but Lassie was never released here in St. Louis. Why I don’t know but the result was that I didn’t get a chance to see it until I finally got around to renting it. Once I saw it I started telling everyone to see it.

This Lassie is set at the beginning of World War I Britain and Scotland. Lassie lives with a mining family with one boy who adores Lassie. I won’t tell you any more other than that the movie makers have made a movie that reaches a new level of excellence for a dog movie.

While Lassie is the imperilled heroine, the movie goes beyond simply being a dog movie as most people think about them. The story highlights the vicious inequities in the UK at this time. Through an excellent script and marvelous actors (including Lassie) we are shown the highest and lowest of the human animal.

So if you’re looking for a movie that will make you cry AND think, check out Lassie!