Lassie

It may sound a bit embarrassing, but this German version of Lassie is my first ever encounter with the most famous collie on the big screen. I didn't have high expectations for the film as such, but I like dog movies, so I decided to go see Lassie in the cinema. Story-wise, the film reminded me a lot of last year's A Dog's Way Home, which was actually a bit better and had stronger plot twists. I had a pretty major problem with the child characters, who were terribly annoying for most of the running time, and since they were at the forefront of the story, they were quite distracting. On the other hand, I'd like to mention the likeable Jana Pallaske and the villain Christoph Letkowski, who impressed me the most out of the cast. I found the over-sensitive butler more embarrassing than funny. But I mustn't forget the very main character, Lassie, who together with more than one nice shot of the German countryside was the brightest point of the film. Better two stars! (03/07/2020)

The filmmakers tried to cram a bunch of plot lines into the story, which ultimately hurt the film. If they had focused more on Lassie wandering through the beautiful countryside, it would have turned out better. In the attempt to modernize the classical theme, its poignancy was unfortunately lost. (50%) (10/12/2021)