Togo (2019)

Stunning, truly stunning.

As I pressed play on 'Togo' and began watching the initial scenes unfold, I was expecting a rehash/retread on Disney's previous films on this sort - e.g. 'White Fang' or 'Iron Will'. Those are good in their own right, but this 2019 film - which is about a true story - takes things to another dimension.

It tugs at the heartstrings profusely, from the first scene to the very last. It's superbly written, with there being a fair amount of surprises in terms of how the story unfolds. It's shot beautifully and put together, via the set design etc., excellently, while the score is magnificent.

Then you have the dogs, who are insanely charming throughout - especially, of course, the star that is Togo (Diesel). There's many a moment with him that produce all the feelings, from joy to sorrow to everything in between. The dogs are great and incredibly adorable.

Away from all of that, you have an outstanding performance from Willem Dafoe. Before seeing this, the most I remember of him is his role in 'Mr. Bean's Holiday'. This now takes over in those regards, it's a brilliant job done by Dafoe. Julianne Nicholson merits praise, also.

What a film. Not what I was expecting whatsoever, in the nicest possible way. Glad to see it has also been highly rated online. A must-watch!

If you can imagine a medicinal equivalent of the pony express, then you’ll have an idea of the thrust behind the story of “Togo”. Initially a young hound that his owner Leonhard Seppala (Willem Dafoe) might have readily cooked, his annoying persistence and determination saw him prove his worth before becoming the lead dog on the sleigh run that ensured vital serum reached the northernmost parts of the country with a run of some two hundred-odd miles, often through some atrocious conditions that reached -50° and saw winds in excess of sixty miles per hour. Hands up, I’m not really a dog lover and so whilst there can be no denying the amazing achievements of the dogs and their handler, I found this to be a little too repetitious and frankly, the CGI does it few favours and relies very heavily on the audio to convince us of the treacherous conditions that didn’t quite convince my eyes. Dafoe does well enough, as does Julianne Nicholson as his wife Constance, and the younger version of “Togo” offers us a truly enthusiastic performance as he balances determination, mischief and a sheer bloody-mindedness that might well have seen any other owner put him in a sack and into the rapidly flowing river! A bit like “Call of the Wild”, this is a story of perseverance that I felt could have done with more real and less desktop danger, but of you are a canine-cuddler then you'll doubtless enjoy it.

The dog who did the hardest part never got the statue.

In 1925, a diphtheria outbreak threatened the children of Nome, Alaska. The only way to get serum there in winter was by dog sled, across roughly 700 miles of frozen terrain. What history remembered was Balto, the lead dog of the final relay team, the one who trotted into Nome to fanfare. What history forgot was Togo, a Siberian Husky who covered over 260 miles with his musher Leonhard Seppala, including the most treacherous stretch across Norton Sound in a blizzard. Togo's portion was longer and more dangerous than any other team in the relay. Balto's team ran the last 55 miles.

Ericson Lucks's film doesn't pretend this injustice is subtle. It leans into it and earns the emotion. Willem Dafoe as Seppala is the kind of casting that makes everything around it work better. He plays the partnership between man and dog as exactly that, a partnership, not the usual one-directional devotion. When Togo makes decisions that save the team, Dafoe registers it not as surprise but as recognition.

The Alaska cinematography is genuinely brutal. Shot partially in Iceland, the film presents cold as a physical presence rather than a backdrop. The serum run sequences build real tension even when you know the outcome.

What Togo does well is simple: it corrects a historical record without turning the correction into a lecture. The film is about the dog and the journey. The injustice is context, not content.

Not every story that gets told first is the one most worth telling. This one was worth the wait.

Read our full review at dogwithblog.in/togo-movie-review-legend-of-unsung-hero/