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Saving Shiloh
Warner Bros. // PG // August 22, 2006
List Price: $19.98 [Buy now and save at Amazon]
Ten years after the first "Shiloh" and seven years after the second, we finally get "Saving Shiloh," the movie adaptation of the third and final book in Phyllis Reynolds Naylor's "Shiloh" trilogy.
Behind the camera, little has changed with the series - Dale Rosenbloom once again produces and provides screenplay adaptation, and Sandy Tung, helmer of "Shiloh 2: Shiloh Season," returns to the director's chair. Casting, on the other hand, serves up plenty of changes. There's yet another Marty Preston, the boy who rescued the adorable beagle of the title; with the previous actors too old for the part, Jason Dolley takes the lead. We also get a new dad, in the form of Gerald McRaney, who takes over for Michael Moriarty.
This is an important switch. Moriarty injected plenty of heart and soul into the first two "Shiloh" pictures, his honest, quiet wisdom providing a gentleness to the proceedings. McRaney does a very fine job in the role, but with not as much for the father character to do in this third outing, he feels like more of a placeholder than an integral part of the story.
And on top of that, Rod Steiger's passing in 2002 left his kindly Doc Wallace character absent here (Steiger's death is noted by having Doc share the same fate). We get a scene with a wise veterinarian who almost fills Doc's shoes, reminding us, as Doc often did, about how the way you treat dogs (and, by way of the metaphor, people) will result in the way those dogs/people behave. Yet it's only one brief moment, and it's lacking Steiger's impact.
The film does have death and loss on its mind, perhaps for that reason. One scene has the Prestons visiting a grandmother suffering from Alzheimer's; just as the movie threatens to get overly sappy, it backs away, handling things with a more tender touch, and the scene works. Doc's absence, and the grandmother's impending death, linger over the story.
But it is not the focus of the tale. Instead, we get more from crotchety ol' Judd Travers (reprised again by the excellent Scott Wilson) and his path to redemption. The first film saw the slightest beginnings of Judd's change to becoming a better man; the second film had that change as its main focus. Now, with Judd struggling to improve himself, the attention is on Judd's reputation in town. A man that once fought with Judd has gone missing, and gossip being what it is, the townsfolk start saying that Judd's a killer. And then a string of robberies break out, and once again, all eyes are on Judd.
We know Judd's innocent, because we spent time with Marty as he watched Judd turn around his nasty ways. But what of Judd's neighbors? Why can't they accept Judd as a better person? This is the heart of the story (as underlined by Marty studying the idea of innocent until proven guilty at school), and once again, Wilson delivers a nuanced performance that turns Judd into a complex character that feels far more real than the majority of characters in family films.
And yet "Shiloh Season" is relatively weak compared to its predecessors. The main problem here is in the robbery/murder subplot - somebody has to be doing this stuff, so we're tossed a few scenes involving some criminal types that would feel more at home in a Hardy Boys mystery, or perhaps a live action Disney adventure from the 1970s. There is indeed more adventure here than in the previous films, notably a final scene involving a daring rescue on the river comes off as forced and out of place in this franchise.
There's also less for everyone to do. With major character arcs mostly wrapped up at the end of "Shiloh 2," this third chapter comes off as little more than the tying up of loose ends. As such, it's a bit more episodic in the telling, which makes the film slightly uneven in tone.
Ah, but when you put Scott Wilson and Judd Travers together, you're guaranteed something special, and while the overall story fails to impress on the scale of its predecessors, there are some wonderful moments found throughout, mostly in the way Wilson portrays Judd's unease in dealing with neighbors who might be a little "better" than he is. (An early moment that has Judd defending his life-long habit of eating squirrel is particularly touching.) The dog may be in the title, but it's Judd that keeps us watching.
As such, "Shiloh Season" is a welcome return, and while never matches the magic of the other "Shiloh" films, there's enough of that familiar special something that makes us happy to have one more visit with the Prestons, their adorable dog, and their grumpy neighbor.
The DVD
Video
The anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) image is much cleaner than the previous "Shiloh" movies, although there's still the occasional grain and softness. The cinematography seems to be brighter all around, soft autumn hues replaced by sunnier skies, so that might be why it looks better than its predecessors. That, or it's because this is a brand new movie, and it's hard to go wrong transferring something this fresh.
A pan-and-scan version of the film is offered on the B side of this flipper disc.
Audio
The Dolby 5.1 track is nothing fancy, so subdued that you'll often forget it's surround. This fits the laid-back feel of the movie. A Spanish stereo track is also available, as are optional subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.
Extras
Fifteen minutes of interviews with the cast and filmmakers make a hearty improvement over the cheap electronic press kit offerings found on the DVDs for the other "Shiloh" films. Sure, we get the typical amount of "so-and-so was great to work with," but there's also a nice discussion about why you should read the books before seeing the movies, and there's much less of a self-promotional vibe here.
Less successful is the overly cutesy three-minute featurette "An Interview with Shiloh," in which an anonymous female voice-over actor pretends to be Carrie, the dog who played Shiloh. "Carrie" goes on to tell us how much fun it was to work with her trainer. It's a nifty way to teach kids about how animal actors are handled on set, but it's so pushy in its adorableness that parents may want to leave the room.
A music video for the film's sweet theme song, "Open Your Heart," contains the usual movie clips, as well as a handful of behind-the-scenes footage.
Rounding out the set are trailers for "Superman: Brainiac Attacks," "JammX Kids," and "Tom and Jerry in Shiver Me Whiskers." Oddly, a slate advertising the "Shiloh" book series (reading, simply: "Read the books that inspired the movies!") is listed as a trailer. Huh.
Final Thoughts
If you've followed the previous "Shiloh" films, then you'll be satisfied, if not overjoyed, by this final chapter. Recommended.
Behind the camera, little has changed with the series - Dale Rosenbloom once again produces and provides screenplay adaptation, and Sandy Tung, helmer of "Shiloh 2: Shiloh Season," returns to the director's chair. Casting, on the other hand, serves up plenty of changes. There's yet another Marty Preston, the boy who rescued the adorable beagle of the title; with the previous actors too old for the part, Jason Dolley takes the lead. We also get a new dad, in the form of Gerald McRaney, who takes over for Michael Moriarty.
This is an important switch. Moriarty injected plenty of heart and soul into the first two "Shiloh" pictures, his honest, quiet wisdom providing a gentleness to the proceedings. McRaney does a very fine job in the role, but with not as much for the father character to do in this third outing, he feels like more of a placeholder than an integral part of the story.
And on top of that, Rod Steiger's passing in 2002 left his kindly Doc Wallace character absent here (Steiger's death is noted by having Doc share the same fate). We get a scene with a wise veterinarian who almost fills Doc's shoes, reminding us, as Doc often did, about how the way you treat dogs (and, by way of the metaphor, people) will result in the way those dogs/people behave. Yet it's only one brief moment, and it's lacking Steiger's impact.
The film does have death and loss on its mind, perhaps for that reason. One scene has the Prestons visiting a grandmother suffering from Alzheimer's; just as the movie threatens to get overly sappy, it backs away, handling things with a more tender touch, and the scene works. Doc's absence, and the grandmother's impending death, linger over the story.
But it is not the focus of the tale. Instead, we get more from crotchety ol' Judd Travers (reprised again by the excellent Scott Wilson) and his path to redemption. The first film saw the slightest beginnings of Judd's change to becoming a better man; the second film had that change as its main focus. Now, with Judd struggling to improve himself, the attention is on Judd's reputation in town. A man that once fought with Judd has gone missing, and gossip being what it is, the townsfolk start saying that Judd's a killer. And then a string of robberies break out, and once again, all eyes are on Judd.
We know Judd's innocent, because we spent time with Marty as he watched Judd turn around his nasty ways. But what of Judd's neighbors? Why can't they accept Judd as a better person? This is the heart of the story (as underlined by Marty studying the idea of innocent until proven guilty at school), and once again, Wilson delivers a nuanced performance that turns Judd into a complex character that feels far more real than the majority of characters in family films.
And yet "Shiloh Season" is relatively weak compared to its predecessors. The main problem here is in the robbery/murder subplot - somebody has to be doing this stuff, so we're tossed a few scenes involving some criminal types that would feel more at home in a Hardy Boys mystery, or perhaps a live action Disney adventure from the 1970s. There is indeed more adventure here than in the previous films, notably a final scene involving a daring rescue on the river comes off as forced and out of place in this franchise.
There's also less for everyone to do. With major character arcs mostly wrapped up at the end of "Shiloh 2," this third chapter comes off as little more than the tying up of loose ends. As such, it's a bit more episodic in the telling, which makes the film slightly uneven in tone.
Ah, but when you put Scott Wilson and Judd Travers together, you're guaranteed something special, and while the overall story fails to impress on the scale of its predecessors, there are some wonderful moments found throughout, mostly in the way Wilson portrays Judd's unease in dealing with neighbors who might be a little "better" than he is. (An early moment that has Judd defending his life-long habit of eating squirrel is particularly touching.) The dog may be in the title, but it's Judd that keeps us watching.
As such, "Shiloh Season" is a welcome return, and while never matches the magic of the other "Shiloh" films, there's enough of that familiar special something that makes us happy to have one more visit with the Prestons, their adorable dog, and their grumpy neighbor.
The DVD
Video
The anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1) image is much cleaner than the previous "Shiloh" movies, although there's still the occasional grain and softness. The cinematography seems to be brighter all around, soft autumn hues replaced by sunnier skies, so that might be why it looks better than its predecessors. That, or it's because this is a brand new movie, and it's hard to go wrong transferring something this fresh.
A pan-and-scan version of the film is offered on the B side of this flipper disc.
Audio
The Dolby 5.1 track is nothing fancy, so subdued that you'll often forget it's surround. This fits the laid-back feel of the movie. A Spanish stereo track is also available, as are optional subtitles in English, French, and Spanish.
Extras
Fifteen minutes of interviews with the cast and filmmakers make a hearty improvement over the cheap electronic press kit offerings found on the DVDs for the other "Shiloh" films. Sure, we get the typical amount of "so-and-so was great to work with," but there's also a nice discussion about why you should read the books before seeing the movies, and there's much less of a self-promotional vibe here.
Less successful is the overly cutesy three-minute featurette "An Interview with Shiloh," in which an anonymous female voice-over actor pretends to be Carrie, the dog who played Shiloh. "Carrie" goes on to tell us how much fun it was to work with her trainer. It's a nifty way to teach kids about how animal actors are handled on set, but it's so pushy in its adorableness that parents may want to leave the room.
A music video for the film's sweet theme song, "Open Your Heart," contains the usual movie clips, as well as a handful of behind-the-scenes footage.
Rounding out the set are trailers for "Superman: Brainiac Attacks," "JammX Kids," and "Tom and Jerry in Shiver Me Whiskers." Oddly, a slate advertising the "Shiloh" book series (reading, simply: "Read the books that inspired the movies!") is listed as a trailer. Huh.
Final Thoughts
If you've followed the previous "Shiloh" films, then you'll be satisfied, if not overjoyed, by this final chapter. Recommended.
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