What’s The Best Dog Movie Ever?

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My wife recently brought home Marley and Me because she’s gone dog wild. (Wait till you hear about the local dog show.) I found the movie to be extremely average. But damn if the final scene didn’t reduce me to a blubbering mess. But then, again, most dog movies do. Which brings us to a fine Hump Day Discussion: What’s the best dog movie of all time?

I favor Where the Red Fern Grows, because I don’t think a better dog flick exists. (And also because I still remember my older brother reading the book aloud to me when I was just a child, prompting me to dream that our mutt, Flapper, had a touch of coonhound in him.) Hard to compete with two redbones, Little Ann and Big Dan, tromping through the Ozarks with a young, aspiring coon hunter in tow.

Call of the Wild and White Fang, two movies based on classic Jack London novels, can’t be left out of the discussion. Buck and White Fang do for Alaska and the Yukon what Little Ann and Big Dan did for the Ozarks.

I can hear you now, “What about Old Yeller? You stone-hearted lug!” It’s a classic, no doubt. And if you can resist tears at the end of this one you might be from Planet Remulak.

And while it has nothing remotely to do with the outdoors, Best in Show is a stroke of movie-making genius.

Is one of these your favorite? Am I leaving the obvious winner out? Maybe Rin Tin Tin? You tell me. But please, don’t mention Air Bud.