Man’s Best Friend
Director- John Lafia
Cast- Ally Sheedy, Lance Henriksen
Country of Origin – USA
Distributor - Scream Factory
Number of discs – 1
Reviewed by - Tyler Miller
Date- 4/26/2019
Lori (Ally Sheedy) is a tired Television reporter who is dying for a new hit story. She discovers some strange things going on at the EMAX Research Facility. The company is experimenting on a wide variety of animals and Lori wants to blow the cover on it. While recording she is interrupted by Dr. Jarret (Lance Henriksen) and sets loose his priced experiment, a normal looking dog named Max. But Max is a DNA spliced crossbred super dog with super vision, acid urine, and unstoppable killing power!
MAN’S BEST FRIEND (1993) is an above average entry into the Animals Run Amuck subgenre, that is a little uneven in tone. Directed by John Lafia (CHILD’S PLAY 2) with some nice visual flair, this movie is filled with insane sight gags and some fun horror elements. The horror is undercut by some silly family music and oh shucks moments, including a “love” scene with a neighbor dog. The last 3rd makes up for this with plenty of bloodshed and suspense building set pieces.
Working with animals is one of the big no-nos in film production, but here the animal handlers put on a good show with a naturally camera-friendly dog. He still the shows with plenty of realistic behavior and then can turn on a dime for the scary scenes. This is aided by some impressive puppet work with the biggest highlight being the scene where Max eats a whole cat.
The great character actor Lance Henriksen (HARD TARGET, MIND RIPPER) makes the best of his underwritten role. His sudden outrage and screaming matches are some of the film’s best moments. Ally Sheedy (THE BREAKFAST CLUB) is also likeable even when the script and direction giving her no favors. Her character is always forwarding the plot with the dumbest decisions possible. In a small but nasty part is William Sanderson (FIGHT FOR YOUR LIFE) as a junkyard owner who abuses dogs. Luckily his character gets a nasty death scene.
MAN’S BEST FRIEND Is a highly enjoyable killer dog movie.
The 5.1 English DTS-HD MA track is lively and has no hiss or pops. The musical score and effects are full and never get over powering against the dialogue. English subtitles are included.
The 1080p HD picture is sharp with some well-defined focus and black levels. There is some minor film grain but no print damage. A few shots during the daylight scenes are washed out in the corners. All the scenes have clear details and full textures. A handsome transfer.
There is a new commentary with writer/director John Lafia, TV spots, a trailer gallery.
MAN’S BEST FRIEND is a fun animal run amuck flick with two solid performances from Sheedy and Henriksen. Shout! Factory’s transfer is a welcomed upgrade for horror fans. Throw this one on with plenty of popcorn and beer. Recommended.
