Very sweet and pleasant, if maybe a tad bland. This is one of those non-Disney kid movies which lack the House of Mouse sheen but are still well-made and feature plenty of adorable doggo waggling.
Prolific producer Dale Rosenbloom's sole directorial credit (he also adapted the screenplay from Phyllis R. Naylor's book) follows the original story closely and his direction is adequate, just not particularly interesting. Perhaps this was due to the difficulties in working with both children and animals and set-ups needed to be done quickly and simply. Like in the book, there's a messiness to the plot turns and this adds a layer of freshness unseen in most other films which follow a standard three-act structure.
The real joys come from the actors involved. An unrecognizable Ann Dowd (years away from her triumphs in Compliance and The Handmaid's Tale) has a pleasant, smallish role as the main kid Marty's mother, but the film really belongs to the men.
Rod Steiger is fine and gets a nice little monologue because hey, it's Rod Steiger and he needs to do something. The great Michael Moriarty has always been a personal favorite of mine (especially his work with Larry Cohen) and his expert under-acting fits the role of the stern but loving dad.
However, the most challenging character has always been Judd Travers. As written by Naylor, he's a nasty piece of work and his actions are sure to rile up any reader, proving how well-realized Naylor's creation is. Veteran actor Scott Wilson is more than up to the challenge. Some of Judd's history is moved up closer to the beginning, likely to soften the blow of just how mean and unbending Wilson plays the animal-abusing hunter, but he never winks at the audience. He's not even a villain you love to hate. Judd is a human being who happens to be (almost) rotten to the core.
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