White Dog

White Dog (1982)

  • 90% of critics liked it
    (10 reviews)

  • 71% of users liked it
    (2,024 ratings)

A powerful saga about racism. Julie Sawyer (Kristy McNichol) hits a handsome white dog with her car one night and then nurses it back to health. One day, the theretofore mild-mannered dog saves her life by viciously attacking and killing a rapist who breaks into her home. Lucy discovers that the dog… More

PG,
Directed By
Written By
Samuel Fuller, Curtis Hanson
Genres
Drama
In Theaters
Jan 1, 1982 Wide
On DVD
Dec 2, 2008

Critic Reviews

  • Brian Juergens, CampBlood.org

    A misunderstood masterpiece - not just a poignant movie about racism, but also a stellar example of how genre film can be effectively used to address a society's ills.

  • Paul Brenner, Filmcritic.com

    one film that will never make it into the Animal Planet lineup.

  • Fernando F. Croce, Slant Magazine

    Hate is a dog from hell in White Dog, Samuel Fuller's abused and abandoned late-career masterpiece about homegrown racism.

  • Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com

    A simply told story that says more about racism than many NAACP-approved films.

  • Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews

    Compelling oddball thriller about a racist dog who only attacks blacks is directed by the always interesting Sam Fuller.

Read all 9 critic reviews

See more critic ratings and reviews on Rotten Tomatoes

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Featured Audience Ratings

  • Directors C


    [img]http://images.rottentomatoes.com/images/user/icons/icon14.gif[/img] Upon it's original release Samuel Fuller's masterpiece White Dog was wrongly accused of being racist, when it is in fact one of the least racist films i've ever laid my eyes upon. Firstly the… More

  • Spencer S


    White Dog was a film that was both lovingly devote to the relationship between a girl and her dog, and a bitter resignation towards racism in the world. The film is one giant metaphor for racism, portrayed in guise as an unnamed white dog. The dog is discovered by a young actress in… More

  • Randy T


    What Sam Fuller lacks in finance and technology he <i>almost</i> makes up for in style and intent. <i>White Dog</i> is 5 star social commentary on a 2 star budget.

  • Graham J


    Sam Fuller's late masterpiece and in my opinion his best film. Looking at it on Blu-Ray, this film feels incredibly fresh.

  • Cynthia S


    A lost gem?? uh, I think not. As good as the storyline might be, I couldn't get past the poor acting (made for TV quality, circa 1980), and the ridiculous dialogue. I was very dissapointed.

Read all 17 featured audience ratings

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Cast

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