Director: Philip John
Writer: Derek Boyle, Raymond Friel (Screenplay)
Starring: Jack Parry-Jones, Christy O’Donnell, Tara Lee, Chris Donald, Tam Dean Burn, Tanya Franks, Shauna Macdonald
Plot: Two teenage step brothers fall for the same girl on a chaotic road trip from Shetland to Glasgow.
There may be spoilers the rest of the review
Verdict: Delightful Heart-warming Film
Story: Moon Dogs starts as we meet our two step brothers, Michael (Parry-Jones) who is about to take his last exam before university and Thor (O’Donnell) the musician who likes to experiment with his sound on the remote island of Shetland. When Michael fails his exams he doesn’t get a chance to head to Glasgow with his girlfriend, forcing him to get job.
When Michael believes his girlfriend is cheating on him, he grabs Thor and the two go off crossing the islands to mainland Scotland and along the way they meet the free spirit Caitlin (Lee) and the three head to Glasgow with Michael looking to find his girlfriend, Caitlin look to head to a music festival while Thor search for his long-lost mother. Along the way the two boys both fall for Caitlin as we see how the two’s lives get turned upside by the adventure.
Thoughts on Moon Dogs
Characters – Michael believes his life is going to get him out of his small Shetland Island town with his university in Glasgow but when that dreams get shattered he must face a year of work. He keeps hope alive of leaving but soon he decides to up and leave to find his girlfriend with his brother. Thor is the step brother of Michael that spends his time making music as he is hiding from the social side of the world, he agrees to go with Michael to Glasgow believe it will give him a chance to meet his mother. Caitlin is the free spirit the boys meet along the way, she is a lot more streetwise than they are but also has her own dreams of getting to Glasgow to perform in a music festival. The relationship between the brother’s does feel genuine throughout the film as they are loyal to each other while also not being good friends.
Performance – The performances from the three young actors are great with Jack Parry-Jones showing us the young man who believes he path is set for him. Christy O’Donnell could be considered the scene stealer with his emotionally driven performance while Tara Lee is great throughout the film.
Story – The road trip story is a tried and tested formula, it has relationships pushed to the limits along the way which is the driving force of the completing it desire. Having all three having different motivation into going gives our characters the chance of self-discovery that they needed and you are happy to join them on the adventure.
Comedy – The comedy used through the film is placed perfectly hand in hand with the drama giving us a light-hearted take on a real-life experience that the boys would go on.
Settings – Showing the small-town settings the boys come from in Shetland heading towards one of the biggest cities in Scotland Glasgow shows the different world they are entering into.
Scene of the Movie – Laptop party.
That Moment That Annoyed Me – The one addition I would like to have seen would have been learning how long the parents have been together.
Final Thoughts – This is a charming comedy drama showing the difficulties young people can have seeing people leave their small town only to be left behind and this follows their desire to also leave even for just one day.
Overall: Enjoyable comedy drama with heart, laughs and a message.
Rating
