The Call of the Wild is all Bark and No Bite
The Call of the Wild, a retelling of Jack London’s classic 1903 novel, features dazzling visual effects and is well-anchored by a brusque performance from Harrison Ford. However, due to contrary ideas and a lack of tonal cohesion, The Call of the Wild fumbles unceremoniously with London’s story. Between the cartoonish main character and the staggeringly quick changes in tone, the struggle to present a meaningful and entertaining film is painstakingly fought throughout the brief runtime. Yet somehow, neither is achieved.
Buck is a mixed breed St. Bernard/Scotch Collie who enjoys his pampered life on Judge Miller’s (Bradly Whitford) sprawling California estate. Mischief and mayhem are allotted to him due to his privilege as a coddled pet. Suddenly his world changes as he is dog-napped and taken away from his warm home, soon finding himself in the frigid Yukon in the peak of the Gold Rush. His spirit beaten but not broken, Buck learns his way around a dogsled crew at the benevolent hands of Perrault and Françoise (Omar Sy and Cara Gee), two dispatchers running mail between remote villages. Once in the nature of the rugged northern terrain, Buck begins to see wild apparitions, urging him to embrace his untamed instincts. Buck at first resists the call, instead choosing to bend to human masters. While some masters are kind-natured like Perrault and Françoise, others are not. In keeping with the episodic fashion of London’s novel, Buck leaves the employ of the dispatchers and is bought by a vile yet foppish group of outsiders. Hal (Dan Stevens), Mercedes (Karen Gillan), and Charles (Colin Woodell) are cartoonish in their behavior but cruel in their dispositions. Their ineptitude and ignorance push Buck and the other canines to the edge of their lives. However, fate steps in and Buck finds himself a new master. In John Thornton (Ford), Buck finds companionship and compassion. In his new life in the wilderness, Buck confronts his instincts and wrestles with the implications of answering the call of the wild.
From animator Chris Sanders (Lilo and Stitch, How To Train Your Dragon, The Croods), in his live-action directorial debut, The Call of the Wild experiments with real humans and CGI dogs, particularly Buck. The effort that went into animating Buck, sculpting his body and hair, and placing him in a real-life environment is admirable. The downside is, his existence in a purely natural world is extremely disconnecting and Buck never feels like he belongs among the actors and sets. His animation looks real enough, but does not feel suited for the environment at all. Buck’s bizarre human-like facial reactions and the ‘too perfect’ look of his body just add to the coldness of his presence. It is very hard to understand the struggles of Buck in his fight with man and nature if he himself looks like an extra in Scooby-Doo. Here, the entire theme of the movie is in jeopardy, just by having a main character that looks comical even in the most dramatic scenes.
This adds to the contradiction in tone felt throughout the film. At times, The Call of the Wild is brilliant in its slapstick comedy. Then there is stark violence against animals, which young viewers may find jarring. Once a villain is introduced, his threats constantly evaporate due to his clumsy and caricature-like appearance. For every bit of humor that is wedged between the drama, it is undercut by danger or violence. In this way, the film never seems to understand what it is trying to say and how best to commit to that message. The result is so incoherent that a viewer could get whiplash if they miraculously found themselves truly invested in the film. Aspects of a children’s film exist in cartoon Buck hamming to the camera, but the violence and drama of the film lend itself to a more mature audience. The lack of continuity undermines a great story, one held together by its flesh-and-blood actors.
Harrison Ford does yeoman’s work as John Thornton, a force of good in Buck’s life. Thornton’s gruff demeanor and mutual adoration for Buck shine through the disassociated elements of the film. Thornton inexplicably narrates the film, which is comforting but also confusing. His presence permeates the film, which gives the illusion that he is the main character, adding to the disconnect. The real stars that tend to carry the film are Perrault and Françoise. The latter, played by Cara Gee who is Ojibwe, represents the indigenous people of Canada. Within The Call of the Wild’s episodic nature, her character bolsters the best sequences of the film and her standoffishness and love for Buck and the other dogs succeed where other characters falter. Likewise, Perrault’s character, a black French Canadian, is a beacon of education and compassion for Buck and a guiding hand in his pursuits. Both of these characters are crucial to Buck’s understanding of the human world. Whereas Buck often finds himself beaten and whipped, mostly in the clutches of white men, in the hands of Perrault and Françoise, he finds that humans are capable of tenderness and do not always live by the law of club and fang.
Much of The Call of the Wild takes place in the unspoiled wilderness of the north. Nature itself plays a huge role in the course of the story and by extension the decisions that face Buck. Often the naturalness of the world feels artificial. The sun, trees, and snow look too perfect, exactly like they were was painstakingly recreated on a computer screen. Buck looks too modeled and pristine as well. Nothing in the natural world is that perfect; nature is raw and unfiltered. By animating and cleaning up the realness of the world that encapsulates The Call of the Wild, the story is immediately incomprehensible. While there are bright spots, the balance between real and artificial is never reconciled, and because of this, The Call of the Wild feels too absurd to be real.
