Two films featuring dogs

Two more films at Edinburgh International Film festival today and both featured dogs.

In Greyhawk, reclusive army veteran Mal loses Quincy his guide dog and believes the dog has been stolen by one of the gangs from the notorious Greyhawk estate. Negotiating the estate's multi storey housing for the first time, alone and feeling his way with a white stick, Mal sets out to find his dog. Along the way he encounters in turn ridicule, aggression, misunderstanding, kindness, generosity and humour from various of the estate's residents.

The film often moves at Mal's pace, the uncertain tapping of a white cane at the edge of a pavement, the wide sweeping of the cane around an unknown open space, feeling for the boundary markers.

Mal is difficult and rude around other people, but his nicer side comes out with Quincy. However, as  he searches for the dog, Mal starts to realise he needs to become part of the community around him, and that there is good and bad in everyone where-ever they are.

The dog in animated feature The Nut Job is a rescue pug called Precious who has been pressed into service as a guard dog for a mafia gang that are using a nut shop as a cover while they carry out a plan to rob a bank. At the same time the animals in the local park have run out of food for the winter and are planning to rob the nut shop.

Both the animals and the humans are prone to internal squabbles and power struggles. Grayson the squirrel who thinks he is a superstar doesn't want anything to do with Surly the maverick outsider squirrel but neither of them seem to realise that the real power lies with the raccoon who has a cardinal sidekick that rarely leaves his wrist.


Can the animals work together to secure themselves enough food for the winter? Watch this highly entertaining and beautifully animated film and find out!

Greyhawk was showing as part of the Edinburgh International Film Festival and should be released into UK cinemas on the near future.

The Nut Job is showing at 1300, 29 June at Festival Theatre and will be released into UK cinemas soon. A Nut Job 2 is planned....

You can read my previous reviews of the film festival so far by following the links below:

Garnet's Gold.

The Japanese Dog.

Beloved Sisters.

Virunga. (and you can read about the Q & A with the Virunga team here)

A Dangerous Game.

My Name is Salt.

Snowpiercer. 

The Owners.

Legacy, Mistory and Language - a review of N: The Madness of Reason; A House in Berlin and Is the Man Who is Tall Happy?

Ancient Temples, Vertigo and Film-making - a review of Manakamana and La ultima pelicula.

Disclaimer: I have a press pass for the Edinburgh International Film Festival amd am attending free press screenings of these films. 

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