Snow Dogs

Director: Brian Levant Brian Levant

Overview

"It's dogs galore in the Cuba Gooding Jr. Disney vehicle Snow Dogs. Disney's work on this 1.33:1 full-frame version of Snow Dogs is less than stellar and disappointing at best. While the colors and black levels are all well-saturated and very even, the fact that the original widescreen version has been cropped should makes fans of the film mad as a pack of wild arctic wolves. The audio is presented in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround in English and French, as well as DTS 5.1 Surround in English. Featuring an aggressive array of sounds and effects, both the DTS and Dolby 5.1 soundtracks are bombastic and very full. Also included on this disc are subtitles in English. The special features on Snow Dogs should please those looking for a bit of insight into the making of the film. A commentary by director Brian Levant and producer Jordan Kerner is both entertaining and enlightening. Three featurettes (""Going to the Dogs,"" ""Chillin' With the Actors,"" and ""Tolketna on Ice"") include a bevy of information on the film's production, plus interviews by some of the cast and crew, behind-the-scenes footage, and a look at how some of the effects in the film were achieved (animatronic dogs). Finally there are a few deleted/extended scenes that don't add up to very much, a mildly fun set-top game called ""Ted's Arctic Challenge,"" and a plethora of trailers for other Disney movies."

Product Details

Release Date:	05/14/2002
UPC:	0786936184914
Original Release:	2002
Rating:	PG
Source:	Walt Disney Video
Region Code:	1
Presentation:	[Full Frame]
Sound:	[Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround, DTS 5.1-Channel Surround Sound]
Language:	English
Time:	1:39:00

Special Features

Deleted and extended scenes; "Ted's Arctic Challenge" set-top game; Three featurettes: "Going to the Dogs," "Chillin' With the Actors," and "Tolketna on Ice"; Audio commentary with director Brian Levant and producer Jordan Kerner; DTS 5.1 Digital Surround Sound; Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound; Full-screen (1.33:1); French-language track: Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Cuba Gooding Jr.	Ted Brooks
James Coburn	Thunder Jack
Joanna Bacalso	Barb
Nichelle Nichols	Amelia
M. Emmet Walsh	George
Graham Greene	Peter Yellowbear
Brian Doyle-Murray	Ernie
Jean Michel Pare	Olivier
Michael Bolton	Himself
Jason Pouliotte	Sneed Brother No. 1
Randy Birch	Vet No. 2
David Boyce	Sneed Brother No. 2
Frank C. Turner	Neely
Ron Small	Arthur
Alison Matthews	TV Reporter
Jascha Washington	Young Ted
Christopher Judge	Dr. Brooks
Lisa Dahling	Mrs. Yepremian
Daneile Folta Kehealy	Rollerblader with Dog
Peter 'Mus' Musooli	Valet
Lossen Chambers	Receptionist
Andrea Butterfield	Patient
Oscar Goncalves	Ernesto Julio Santisto
Angela Moore	Lucy
Tracey Henderson	Vet NO. 1
Dave 'Squatch' Ward	Taxi Driver
Donnelly Rhodes	Race Official No. 1
Jay Brazeau	Race Official No. 2
Phillip Beer	Chess Player
George Labelle	Chess Player
Monika Kramlik	Miami Pretty Girl
Gwendolyn Osborne	Miami Pretty Girl
Anthony Harrison	Dentist
Shaw Madsen	Blonde Guy
Joe Maffei	Old Man
Nicole Oliver	Nurse
Veronica Shattuck	Chatting Woman No. 1
Nicola O'Shea	Chatting Woman No. 2
James Belushi	Demon
Jane Sibbett	Nana
Sisqó	Dr. Rupert Brooks
Sisqo	Actor
Jean Michel Paré	Olivier

Technical Credits

Jim Kouf

Tommy Swerdlow

Michael Goldberg

Mark Gibson

Philip Halprin

Brian Levant	Director
Jim Kouf	Screenwriter
Tommy Swerdlow	Screenwriter
Michael Goldberg	Screenwriter
Mark Gibson	Screenwriter
Philip Halprin	Screenwriter
Stuart Aikins	Casting
Sean Cossey	Casting
Cathy Sandrich Gelfond	Casting
Casey Grant	Executive Producer,Producer
Deb Green	Casting
Amanda Mackey Johnson	Casting
Jordan Kerner	Producer
Tim Landry	Special Effects
Jacob Rupp	Stunts
Christine Whitaker	Executive Producer,Producer

Editorial Reviews

No review of Snow Dogs would be complete without a couple obligatory words bemoaning how far Cuba Gooding Jr. has fallen since Jerry Maguire. It's possible Gooding never wanted to uphold the reputation of Oscar winner, and accepted being on a downward slide since that career pinnacle. But it's doubtful he imagined himself scrambling through the Alaskan wilderness, over-emoting like a buffoon, eyes and mouth fighting to see which could open the widest. Such slouching toward stereotypes is a disturbing trend in Disney movies, though the premise itself might be more directly responsible for turning the film into a walking punch line. To be sure, Gooding gives it his all, but Snow Dogs may have needed less than that to work. For the youngest children, just giving the dogs facial expressions might be enough. But older ones will probably find it square at best. Since this is Disney, the movie is assembled with a certain tidy competence and at least a minimum of good cheer; another Disney byproduct is that it deals with an orphan type seeking out his long-lost parentage, part of an ongoing thematic preoccupation. And sure, it's nice to empower Alaska as a demographic, as well as the tragically ignored sport of dog sledding. But unless you're a Star Trek fan peeking in to see Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) as Gooding's mother, mush onward.