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Pick of the Litter
Documentary
Plenty of people might enjoy this documentary if it were nothing more than OMG Adorable Doggos: The Motion Picture, but co-directors Don Hardy Jr. and Dana Nachman (Batkid Begins) offer more than that. For two years, they follow five siblings from a Labrador retriever litter as they’re trained by volunteers for the Northern California-based Guide Dogs for the Blind to see if they’re up to the job of working with vision-impaired people. There are a few mildly dramatic turns along the way—not all of the litter-mates turn out to have the right stuff—and some earned emotion from the trainers who work with and become attached to the puppies, only to have to surrender them at one point or another. Mostly, it’s an intriguing study of the challenges involved in preparing dogs to know not just how to obey, but when to disobey when it puts their vision-impaired handler in danger. It’s a solidly made paean to people who put in hard work to help others have more freedom in their lives—and yes, it doesn’t hurt that the doggos are adorable.
Official Site: www.ifcfilms.com/films/pick-of-the-litter
Director: Dana Nachman and Don Hardy Jr.
Writer: Dana Nachman
Producer: Don Hardy Jr., Dana Nachman, Dan Braun and Ian Reinhard
Director: Dana Nachman and Don Hardy Jr.
Writer: Dana Nachman
Producer: Don Hardy Jr., Dana Nachman, Dan Braun and Ian Reinhard
