Soccer Dog – The Movie
A lonely orphan. A lost dog. A soccer-loving father. All three elements came together in the movie Soccer Dog.
Clay, the orphan, did not have the least interest in being a star on the field. Actually, he did not seem to have much interest in anything at all. Until he met Lincoln, a dog lost far from home due to the efforts of an over-zealous dog-catcher. Then Lincoln met a soccer ball. Goal-scoring time?
| Amazon |
On the eve of the new millenium, Callisto Entertainment, John Brister Productions and Watershed Entertainment joined forces to make the Soccer Dog movie. They got Tony Giglio to direct the production from the written work of Daniel Forman. James Marshall starred as Alden, the orphan who adopted another orphan when he grew up. Olivia D’Abo played his wife, Elena, and Jeremy Foley was put in the role of Clay, his adopted son. Billy Drago was the sinister Dog Catcher, Damon Fleming, waiting for every chance to catch Lincoln, a dog that strayed into Clay’s life.
Although there was no data on the actual breed of the dog that played Lincoln, he looked very much like a Berger Picard (pronounced ‘Bare-ZHAY Pee-CARR’). The Picard is a French breed bred for herding. Its lineage included input from the Briard, a French shepherd which looked very much like an Old English Sheepdog, and the Beauceron, another French shepherd which, however, looked more like a Dobermann. The Picard nearly became extinct after the Second World War and is still a rare breed up to this day. In its native France, there are less than four thousand of them. It does look sufficiently nondescript to be mistaken for a mutt. Perhaps that’s why Picards are not noted for show-worthiness.
The Picard is medium-sized with fawn or gray hair which seems to be perpetually unkempt. The ears are erect and the tail is slightly curved at the tip. It has a lively, intelligent personality and responds very well to obedience training. Being bred as a herder, a Picard is happiest when it has something to do. Interestingly, it has a well-developed sense of humor and is one of the few breeds to be able to smile naturally. Due to its love for exercise, a Picard makes an excellent jogging companion.
In the movie Soccer Dog, Lincoln was not a stray. He belonged to a boy who took him to play ball in the park one day. Going after a throw that went over the fence, Lincoln ended up in the net of the over-zealous dog-catcher, Damon Fleming, and was taken into the custody of an animal shelter. Lincoln found a way to get out from his cage and wandered around town for a while before entering Clay’s life.
Clay’s father, Alden, was an ardent soccer fan and was hoping that his adopted son would play a starring role on the field. Unfortunately, Clay was to soccer as oil is to water. So the early attempts to make a soccer player out of the young boy were dismal exercises in futility. Perhaps his early childhood in the totalitarian regime of the Peyton Orphanage had some bearing on his lack of social interaction skills.
So when Clay found Lincoln by the roadside, it was almost akin to finding the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The lonely boy took the wandering dog home and straight into his heart. Later, on the soccer field, out of desperation, Clay’s coach allowed Lincoln to join the team to make up the numbers.
From this point on, it was one goal after another match-winning goal. Until the final championship match. Everybody was there. Including Lincoln’s former owner who finally tracked down his M.I.A. dog through the newspaper reports of the canine striker. Then? I will only say that the movie ended on an upbeat tone. Watch the Soccer Dog DVD to find out yourself.
Soccer Dog the movie is to be treasured for its simple storyline which belied the depth of its exploration of the psyche of a stranded soul. If you are in the US, it may take a bit of effort but if you really try, you can find a Berger Picard or two around somewhere. There are less than 300 Picards reported to be resident in the US.
Just keep your cool if you find your Picard winning over the object of your adoration with his winning smile.
You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.