Directed by Murray Ball
Staring John Clarke, Peter Rowley
Rating PG
Score 5.5/6

Based on New Zealand’s most beloved comic strip “Footrot Flats” about a farmer named Wal, his dog and life in the small town of Raupo. Questions will be answered: Will Wal impress the selectors and become an All Black? Will prize stag be recovered from Blackwater Station? Will Dog keep Wal and his girlfriend Cheeky Hobson apart? And will Dog ever win the affections of Jess?

Okay I suppose its time for another revisit, for those of you who are wondering I first reviewed Footrot Flats: The Dog’s Tail on May 28, 2012. For those of you who haven’t heard of Footrot Flats, it’s a comic strip from New Zealand that first appeared in The Evening Post newspaper in 1976 and ran until 1995. For those of you who might be wondering the movie was first released in New Zealand in 1986 and April of 1987 in Australia.




I have to admit that the animation for the movie does look dated, but the movie’s heart is in the right place and the sound effects used for the helicopter belonging to the Murphy’s of blackwater station sounds very sinister. Parent’s should note that there are a couple of moments in the third act that might be of concern to younger children.
As you would expect the most of the movie’s funnier moments came from the dog who was voiced by Peter Rowley, I particularly enjoyed dog’s efforts ‘chaperoning’ Wal’s date with “Cheeky” Hobson. A lot of Dog’s dialogue in that scene reminded me of Don Adam’s Maxwell Smart.
There is also a fairly good soundtrack and I suppose the song Slice of Heaven is possibly more widely known then the movie.