Review of Old Yeller (1957) by Hunter M — 29 Feb 2016

Old Yeller is a story about a family in the 1800s whose father leaves to go on a cattle drive. The oldest boy Travis is left to take care of his mother and younger brother. They find a dog and decide to keep him to help with things around the house and farm. While there's an outbreak of rabies in the area Old Yeller protects the family from a rabid wolf and contracts rabies and needs to be put down.

The plot of the book and movie were set in the 1800s after the civil war. The movie had to get everything correct from that time period, the way people talked and were treated which wasn't an easy take since the movie was released in 1957. Which wasn't a problem with turning the book into a film while just looking a bit more modern than if it were 1957.

A noticeable difference I noticed was Old Yeller was different from what they described in the book. It's not a noticeable unless you read the book and remember the description of Old Yeller that was given. He was a big dog with slick hair, a snub tail or short tail, and a chewed ear. While in the movie Old yeller has a long tail and his ear doesn't look chewed. Old Yeller also looks clean for being a dog that just wanders around killing all kinds of animals in the wilderness.

A scene that was left out of the movie was a bull fight that happened outside of the house. The fight was focused on for a chapter in the book and I believe it should had been added in the movie. The family hears the bulls in the distance making noises while Travis says what he thinks they could be saying to each other. As bulls make their way to each other the family finds a place outside of the house to sit and relax while watching the bulls fight it out. Things go wrong as the bulls head towards the house and the family creating a very dramatic feeling of what's going to happen. Also bringing in comedy at the end of the pull fight with one of the bulls falling into a cart and rolling down the hill, having no idea what is going on. It would had been a good addition to the movie, making people who haven't read the book on the edge of their seats to see what the result is while also getting a good laugh at the bull.

The movie and book come to a similar ending, with a noticeable difference Old Yeller is put down immediately after the fight with the wolf contracting rabies. The family knew he would have rabies and decided to not wait and risk him hurting anyone. While in the movie they waited until he showed effects of rabies then put him down. The ending is the most talked about part of the book and movie. It's talked about so much because no one wanted Old Yeller to die, while being hinted at in the beginning of the book with the setup of having to shoot him. Along with not wanting or even expecting to see such an important character in the book/movie die. Since many of the main characters seem to survive anything they face.

Old Yeller makes have to think about life and how it can end at any point, so you should enjoy it every day that you can. Don't take things for granted no matter how small they are. You'll miss whatever that thing is when it is no longer with you even if you didn't like it so much in the beginning.

I believe that the film was a very similar to the book, only missing a few details here and there. If you watch the movie with children who don't know about death then you'll should have that conversation or not watch the movie with them. Other than the death of Old Yeller the movie is an enjoyable experience just like reading the book even though a few things are missing. The ending of the book and movie are both tear jerking events, the movie more than the book because you are able to see the emotion in the family instead of just reading and imagining how everyone is feeling. They did a great job turning Old Yeller into a film and getting good actors to play the parts.