Plot
Willie Morris looks back on the early 1940s and how it was colored by his dearly beloved dog, a Smooth Fox Terrier whom he had named Skip. Willie is a lonely boy with a gruff, proud father, Jack, a Spanish Civil War veteran, and a charismatic, talkative mother, Ellen, a housewife, but he is an only child with few friends. His one companion is a man who lives next door, Dink Jenkins, who is the local sports hero in Mississippi. However, when Dink is drafted to go to war, Ellen decides to buy Willie a dog, against Jack's wishes, in order that he should have some company.
Willie and Skip became firm friends very quickly. However, Willie gets bullied at school by Big Boy Wilkinson, Henjie Henick, and Spit McGee, until Dink sends him a German helmet and belt from the front line. The other boys demand he play ball in order to win back his belongings, while Skip leaps in to help him. That same day, the three boys talk Willie into spending the night in a graveyard, where they claim a witch is buried. If he stays there, he gets to join their gang and also keep the ball Dink signed for them; otherwise, he has to give them his German helmet. Willie stays at the graveyard for a number of hours until he hears two moonshiners, Millard and Junior, who are loading crates into a crypt. Skip jumps on Millard until Junior comes at him with a spade. Willie slingshots Junior with an acorn and attempts to escape the graveyard with Skip, but they are soon captured by Junior. He threatens to kill Skip unless Willie stays before sunrise. After the two guys leave, the three boys return and accept Willie into their group as a reward.
Skip, having always been a friendly dog, is known by everyone in the town, including black people, which is significant because Mississippi was still segregated at the time. Skip leads Willie through the best parts of his life- his early days. Thanks to Skip, Willie now has three friends and a girlfriend, Rivers. Skip is there for him when Dink gets home, shell-shocked and a drunkard since dishonorably discharged from the Army, presumably for desertion. However, when Willie's first ball game comes along, Skip and Willie have their first falling out. Dink agrees to come along but does not bother because, since the war, he has found competitions do not interest him anymore. Skip, wanting to cheer Willie up, runs onto the field and sits, wagging his tail, refusing to leave. Angry and embarrassed by his poor performance at the game, causing his team to lose, Willie publicly hits Skip across the muzzle, and he disappears without a trace.
Unbeknownst to Willie, Skip has returned to the crypt and has been accidentally shut in the grave where moonshine is being stored. As Willie searches in the graveyard, he hears Skip's bark and runs to save him, but Junior knocks the dog unconscious with the spade. Dink arrives and manages to eject the two moonshiners. As Willie and Dink's families gather in solemnity in the vet's waiting room, Skip nearly dies from his injuries in Willie's arms, but the dog awakens, licking Willie's hands and face.
Willie explains about his friendship with Skip that he had been an only child and Skip was an only dog. When Willie leaves to go to Oxford University in the 1950s, Skip remains with Jack and Ellen, sleeping in Willie's old room, and then dies on Willie's bed. Having succumbed to arthritis, he is then buried under the elm tree by Jack and Ellen, with Jack telling Willie of Skip's death via a transatlantic call.
Reception
The film opened at #3, grossing $7 million. It ended up grossing $35,512,760 worldwide, making it a major box office success and recouping its $4.5 million budget. [1] It was also Warner Bros.'s first family film to be a major success since Space Jam in 1996. The film came in at number 4 of Variety's "dollar for dollar" most profitable films of the year 2000. The movie remained in Variety's Top Ten video sales charts for five months after its video release. My Dog Skip won the Broadcast Film Critics Award for "Best Family Film" for the year 2000, the Silver Medal Giffoni Film Festival Award, the Best Cast Young Star Awards, the Silver Angel Awards winner, the ArkTrust Genesis Award, and the Christopher Award for Best Family Film. It was filmed in the city of Canton, Mississippi; the local visitor's center offers tours showing memorabilia used in the film. A few blocks away from this museum is the house used in the film (private), with a sign in front saying "Skip's House". The author of the book, Willie Morris, suffered from a heart attack right after the film was completed in 1999. Morris saw a preliminary screening of the film in New York and praised it as "an absolute classic." Morris died a couple of days later and never saw the final version. [2] The film is dedicated to his memory.
Rotten Tomatoes gave the film a score of 73% from 82 critics. The site's consensus states: "Critics say My Dog Skip is cute, wholesome entertainment for the family. It's especially designed to appeal to your sentiment, but you might find yourself choking up just the same." [3] Metacritic gave the film a score of 61 based on 26 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews." [4] Roger Ebert gave the film 3 out of 4 stars.
