10 Best Dog Movies
2. Hachi: A Dog's Tale (2009)
If you’ve ever looked at the front cover of this movie, you’d probably assume it’s just a direct-to-video, cheesy flick which deliberately cloys at your emotions for an ultimately mediocre film, complete with Richard Gere in one of his tackiest roles ever and a dog pun for a title.
However, Hachi: A Dog’s Tale is so much more than that and frankly deserves more credit. A contemporised adaptation of the 1987 film Hachiko Monogatari, a college professor discovers an abandoned puppy and takes it into his home for the night, much to the dismay of his wife Cate. Once she realises the natural connection between the two and the fact that they can't locate the original owner, she decides to keep him permanently.
What we are given is a surprisingly mature story with palpable drama and gut-wrenching emotion, not to mention some genuinely gorgeous cinematography. Even if the ending is a bit predictable, the journey getting there is engaging with perfect pacing and excellent acting performances by Richard Gere and Joan Allen.