Movie Review: The Shaggy Dog (1959)

By Polly M. Robertus

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What Parents Should Know
Even kids who balk at black-and-white movies and hokey special effects will find lots of laughs in this well-behaved and housebroken comedy. It's occasionally too slow for 6-, 7- and 8-year-olds, but they'll laugh at the dog's antics. Older kids can follow all the plot threads easily, and will giggle at the slapstick humor. Teens will enjoy if they give it a chance.

The film can also function as a fun introduction to the idealized 1950s --- a world deep in the Cold War, and completely unaware that the role of women was about to change dramatically. This film is a fun way to bring up the way women's roles have changed over time. Family members can talk about what they think women's roles will be like 50 years from now, compared to how they were almost 50 years ago when this film was produced.

Common Sense Media Review
Although the pace lags at times, this movie about a teenage boy under an ancient spell that turns him into a sheepdog remains entertaining. Fine performances by several of the Mouseketeers and Fred McMurray as a dog-phobic father will charm school-age kids and their nostalgic parents. The movie offers a fascinating peek at how 1950s Americans saw the world.

Eleven- and 7-year-old viewers were almost equally amused by The Shaggy Dog, though both grew restless at times as the many plot-wheels gradually meshed. But Wilby's antics as Chiffon, the "Bratislavian Sheepdog," will genuinely entertain young viewers. Parents can have little objection to this well-behaved, clean-cut feature.

For viewers inclined to look at context, this is great 1950s Cold-War fare. Wilby initiates the action by accidentally setting off a rocket in the basement, like any Sputnik-besotted teenage boy of the time would do. And Francine's father is instantly suspect because of his Eastern European background and cultural pretensions; when Mr. Stern shows up at the door, the music lets us know he's a shady character, in case we hadn't noticed his Semitic name.

But bungling WASP innocence sets everything right, with scenes of comic misunderstanding and Keystone Cop-like chases. And of course, Father doesn't know best, even though he definitely wears the pants in the Daniels household; Frieda Daniels is a June Cleaver clone. The two teenage girls have no function other than to be courted. Parents might use the movie to open a discussion on how gender roles have since evolved.

The Shaggy Dog, Disney's first live-action feature, is entertaining family fare. If your kids loved the movie, watch the sequel, The Shaggy D.A..