Year Released:1961
Michael's Movie Grade:B+
History
Like Perri, Nikki Wild Dog of the North used nature photography to help tell a fictional story. However unlike Perri, This film used both nature footage and footage using human actors.
The nature footage in this film was shot in Canada, and the photographers were sent out to find footage, that fit an already written script. Two different units were sent out to Canada to get the footage. One unit was headed by Jack Couffer, who receives credit as the unit's director. Couffer had already worked as a photographer on three of Disney's nature documentaries, two features (The Living Desert and Secrets of Life) and one short (Islands of the Sea). Nikki Wild Dog of the North was his directorial debut. He would later direct the short film A Country Coyote Goes Hollywood and the feature film The Legend of the Boy and the Eagle for Disney. The other unit was headed by Don Haldane. He receives credit as this unit's director. This is the only time he worked for Disney.
This film naturally had many veterans from Disney's nature documentaries working on it. Winston Hibler had been the narrator for all of the Disney nature documentaries at this time, and had written and produced many of them. Hibler was a producer and writer for this film (though Jacques Fauteux, who had never worked for Disney before or since (in fact this was his only English langue film) was the films narrator).Oliver Wallace who had done the music for many Disney films of all types is once again doing the music here. Photographer Lloyd Beebe had also been a photographer for three of Disney's nature documentaries (The Vanishing Prairie, White Wilderness and The Jungle Cat).
This film featured at least three new photographers. These were William W. Bacon III, Ray Jewell and Donald Wilder. William W. Bacon III would later work on Charlie the Lonesome Cougar, while the other two would never work on another Disney movie.
The story of this movie revolved around an unlikely friendship between a dog and a bear. However this friendship happened in real life, as this movie was being made. Both the dog and the bear used for this film quickly became great friends, and were from all accounts inseparable.
The reviews of the film were very positive. The film did okay at the box office, but it was definitely far from one of Disney's biggest hits.
Excellent film.
This movie is often times very exciting, and even pretty intense. For people who only think of Disney as making cute little movies for kids, the fight scene towards the end must be shocking. In fact for those of us who know better, it is still shocking. The reason for this has little to do with blood (though there is some blood) and gore and much more to do with expert filmmaking. The scene is expertly made and extremely exciting. However this is not the only exciting part of the film. A scene were Nikki fights a bear is equally exciting. It is safe to assume that these scenes would not be as exciting if we didn't care about Nikki, but luckily we do.
On top of this the nature photography for this film is beautiful. Simply every scene that uses this is simply gorgeous to look at. Some of these shots even amaze you as to how they were done, and there are many I admit I don't know how they did.
On the downside this movie can feel like two different movies put together at times. Also the animal actors often outshine the human actors. However this are small problems with an excellent movie.
Film Credits
Directors: Jack Couffer, Don Haldane
Writers: Winston Hibler, Ralph Wright, Dwight Hauser
Based on a book by James Oliver Curwood
Cast: Nikki (Nikki), Jean Coutu (Andre Dupas), Émile Genest (Jacques Lebeau), Uriel Luft (Makoki), Robert Rivard (Durante), Jacques Fauteux (Narrator)
Producers: Walt Disney, Winston Hibler, Erwin L. Verity
Music: Oliver Wallace, Evelyn Kennedy, Clifford Vaughan
Photographers: Jack Couffer, Lloyd Beebe, William W. Bacon III, Ray Jewell, Donald Wilder
Editor: Grant K. Smith
Set Decorator: Jack McCullagh
Makeup Artists: Ken Brooke, Barry Nye
Unit Manager: Leo Ewaschuck
Assistant Directors: Jerry Stroll, Phil Hersch
Sound Artists: Robert O. Cook, George Mulholland, André de Tonnancourt
Costumer: Jan Kemp
Animal Trainer: Art Krowchuck
Resources Used
The Disney Films by Leonard Maltin
Leonard Maltin opening and closing remarks on the film for TCM
http://www.tcm.com/tcmdb/title/85030/Nikki-Wild-Dog-of-the-North/articles.html
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055232/?ref_=tttr_tr_tt
http://www.thedisneyfilms.com/search/label/Nikki%20Wild%20Dog%20of%20the%20North
-Michael J. Ruhland
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