In an animal shelter, four dogs are waiting to be adopted. The clock is ticking, as they get euthanized if not adopted within a certain amount of time. Komi only has a few days left but is so depressed that he keeps on self-sabotaging just before getting adopted. His three shelt-anions (got it? Neologism based on shelter and companions. Not my proudest creation, but I still had to give it a go) decide to enter the dog's subconscious, get him to heal from his two previous bad experiences and eventually facilitate his adoption. In the ‘other world', all dogs turn into humans.
“Bow-Wow” is screening at Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival
The short movie is actually a musical. The songs are super catchy and go well with the pop-atmosphere. Colors are bright and become darker and darker as we progress in the dog's psyche. We can hear the dog talking, “Look who's talking” style. The pitch is quite fun. All these elements give a crazy touch that could make the movie hilarious because of how absurd it is. However, the film seems to hesitate to fully go funny-mad. It also keeps serious-moments-that-teach-you-a-lesson obviously separated from other scenes. And those scenes – perhaps also because it is a short – are not developed enough to really empathize with the characters. This results in a touch of frustration for the viewer.
That being said, hats off for the actors who don't take themselves too seriously and give themselves 100%.
“Bow-Wow” is not a bad movie, the music is catchy, it has funny scenes, the images are pleasant to watch, and cute dogs are involved. It will however perhaps speak more to younger audiences. An adaptation into a children's play could also be an interesting option.
