A Boy and His Dog (1975)
January 10, 2023 7:36 AM - Subscribe
Vic (Don Johnson) is a libidinous 18-year-old traversing the post-apocalyptic desert of 2024, in the company of his telepathic dog, Blood. When the pair encounter an underground community, the leader's daughter, Quilla Holmes (Susanne Benton), seduces Vic into their fold, separating him from Blood, who's left to survive on his own. But once Vic discovers he's been lured there solely for mechanized procreation, he realizes he's doomed unless he can escape and rejoin Blood.
Also starring Jason Robards, Tim McIntire, Alvy Moore, Helene Winston, Charles McGraw, Hal Baylor, Ron Feinberg, Michael Rupert, Don Carter, Michael Hershman, L.Q. Jones.
Directed by L.Q. Jones. Screenplay by Jones based on the 1969 novella of the same title by fantasy author Harlan Ellison.
78% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Free to stream on a long list of services in the US. JustWatch listing.
Also starring Jason Robards, Tim McIntire, Alvy Moore, Helene Winston, Charles McGraw, Hal Baylor, Ron Feinberg, Michael Rupert, Don Carter, Michael Hershman, L.Q. Jones.
Directed by L.Q. Jones. Screenplay by Jones based on the 1969 novella of the same title by fantasy author Harlan Ellison.
78% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.
Free to stream on a long list of services in the US. JustWatch listing.
Fun fact - "Blood" was played by a shaggy dog named Tiger, who was also the dog on the Brady Bunch!
posted by jazon at 10:41 AM on January 10, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by jazon at 10:41 AM on January 10, 2023 [3 favorites]
And that's Tim McIntire (who played Alan Freed in American Hot Wax) as Blood's voice.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:10 AM on January 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by DirtyOldTown at 11:10 AM on January 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
I loved this movie. I think now, though, the misogyny (at least, I think I remember it being pretty bad) would make it unwatchable for me.
posted by Gorgik at 12:27 PM on January 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Gorgik at 12:27 PM on January 10, 2023 [2 favorites]
There is a lot to take in with this movie. Vic is a deplorable character. I don't think the movie asks you to be okay with that, but he's still gross.
Probably, the film's primary value at this point is as a time capsule.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:40 PM on January 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
Probably, the film's primary value at this point is as a time capsule.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:40 PM on January 10, 2023 [1 favorite]
I think now, though, the misogyny (at least, I think I remember it being pretty bad) would make it unwatchable for me.
Oh, yeah, it’s pretty bad, in a “future dystopia as envisioned by Ellison” way. I really liked the movie when I was much younger/dumber, and I’m pretty sure it won’t hold up to another viewing.
posted by Thorzdad at 12:43 PM on January 10, 2023
Oh, yeah, it’s pretty bad, in a “future dystopia as envisioned by Ellison” way. I really liked the movie when I was much younger/dumber, and I’m pretty sure it won’t hold up to another viewing.
posted by Thorzdad at 12:43 PM on January 10, 2023
Oh, yeah, it’s pretty bad, in a “future dystopia as envisioned by Ellison” way.
For sure. I mean, Ellison is a man whose Wikipedia entry has literally more a third of its length devoted to a section called "Controversies and Disputes." Even if a person concedes he's written some brilliant stuff, there's no way to overlook that he's a toxic prick and that gets baked in a fair bit.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:50 PM on January 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
For sure. I mean, Ellison is a man whose Wikipedia entry has literally more a third of its length devoted to a section called "Controversies and Disputes." Even if a person concedes he's written some brilliant stuff, there's no way to overlook that he's a toxic prick and that gets baked in a fair bit.
posted by DirtyOldTown at 12:50 PM on January 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
But to be fair, the film's last line is not Ellison's, who felt this change to his work did the story a great disservice, and made a joke of the misogyny inherent to the story premise. In the original story, Vic is devastated by the choice he made, having fallen in love with Quilla June, and (spoiler alert) becomes suicidally depressed as a result in a sequel short story.
Ellison himself, however, tried to sand down the rough edges of Vic and make him (IMO) a slightly more traditional and sympathetic action hero in the script for what would have been a TV pilot in the late '70s/early '80s. You can read this script as part of a posthumously published collection of Vic and Blood material from a few years back. I think it's awful, and I suspect Ellison didn't think much of it either, or I think we would have seen it in his lifetime.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 1:06 PM on January 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
Ellison himself, however, tried to sand down the rough edges of Vic and make him (IMO) a slightly more traditional and sympathetic action hero in the script for what would have been a TV pilot in the late '70s/early '80s. You can read this script as part of a posthumously published collection of Vic and Blood material from a few years back. I think it's awful, and I suspect Ellison didn't think much of it either, or I think we would have seen it in his lifetime.
posted by kittens for breakfast at 1:06 PM on January 10, 2023 [4 favorites]
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posted by computech_apolloniajames at 10:40 AM on January 10, 2023