My Pal Wolf (1944) User Reviews

A dog lover's film

[atlasmb · 5/10 · 5 March 2013]

Like the films of Rin Tin Tin or Lassie, My Pal, Wolf plays on viewer's affections for dogs and their relationships with humans, with emphasis on the loyalty of dogs, and anthropomorphizing their behaviors. Wolf is a German shepherd found by a young girl. The two become fast friends and each has an opportunity to "save" the other. Some of the human characters are nicely acted, though caricatures. Anyone who is a sucker for dog films will probably love this one. There are a couple of scenes which qualify as tearjerkers.

Since this film was made mid-World War II, it also carries the expected patriotic message. It seems "Wolf" is actually owned by the U.S. military. During war times, citizens are always called upon to sacrifice for the war effort. Sacrifice is practically the definition of patriotism during wartime. War time movies also usually have what we might call a propaganda message. In this case, it has to do with the duties of military dogs. This film emphasizes the humanitarian services that these dogs provide, such as transport of medicines.

Were these dogs really used much for transporting medicines on the battlefield? If you refer to Wikipedia's article about "Dogs in Warfare", you will find a description of the wartime uses of dogs, including WWII.

The wartime aspect of the story is the minor part, however. The focus is one the love of a girl for her dog and the dog for the girl. The young actress acquits herself well, though the story is a little trite.

the Army stole my dog

[SnoopyStyle · 6/10 · 27 November 2021]

A busy business woman hires Miss Elizabeth Munn to be the new governess to her little girl, Gretchen Anstey. Munn doesn't like the staff or Gretchen lax manners. The little girl cares for a dog trapped at the bottom of a well and names him Wolf. One day, she falls in but she helps Wolf escape. Wolf manages to warn the staff and Gretchen is rescued. Miss Munn returns the dog back to the Army. Gretchen and the boys help Wolf escape and they set off for Washington.

Munn needs to be an old mean governess. Her casting is a little off. She needs to look meaner. It would make her conversion more compelling. It is a little weird setting up the Army as the bad guys. It would be fine for a non-wartimes movie. It does allow the Secretary of War to be more human but he ends up trying to explain WWII to a little girl. It's awfully awkward. I guess they are trying to equate this with little children sending off their fathers to war. I get the point. In which case, what about Gretchen's father.

The army is not a dog's life.

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 3 March 2024]

A well done family drama that features forgotten child star Sharyn Moffett as a neglected young girl whose strict governess (Jill Esmond) wants to get rid of the German shepherd dog Wolf she has found. It's quite apparent who needs to be gotten rid of with Esmond reminding me of Mary Nash's Frau Rottenweiller from the Shirley Temple film "Heidi". Moffett's parents Leona Maricle and Bruce Edwards are often away so they don't see first hand the cruelties of Esmond, only the servants which includes Una O'Connor and George Cleveland.

"Green tea you've got for blood in your heart!" O'Connor screams at Esmond, and the handyman tells her directly to her face how he doesn't like her. But the dog Wolf really isn't Moffett's to keep so it's a lesson that she needs to accept as he has a purpose to serve. Moffett is quite good, more natural and less cloying than some of the more famous child stars. Esmond is a cold woman in this so it's fun to watch her get her comeuppance for being so deliberately mean, obviously working in the wrong profession. Manages to be touching and lightly humorous at times without resorting to extreme weepiness.

Cute and charming

[preppy-3 · 8/10 · 16 December 2012]

Caught this back in the 1970s. A local TV station showed it uncut and with NO commercial interruptions (which never happened back then). I saw it and loved it! Never forgot it.

It's about a little girl whose parents have no time for her and has a cruel nanny. Near the house is a training center for dogs to use in the war. One escapes, meets the little girl and they immediately become friends. She never wants him to go...but he is needed by the military and they track him down. What will happen? Don't worry--it has happy endings all around:) Sure it's predictable and highly illogical but it works! The acting is good, the dog is cute and the ending will have everybody going "awwwwwwww" with a smile:) Cute little movie. PERFECT for kids.

A movie about the sacrifices of war

[jtaraba-1 · 28 April 2004]

***SPOILERS*** ***SPOILERS*** If there was a little girl more worthy of a friend, I don't know who it is. Gretchen has two working parents that are never home with her and a really nasty nanny that dosen't understand a single thing about children. Gretchen finds a dog that has fallen into an abandoned hole in the ground and brings him home. The dog befriends and protects her and Gretchen wants to keep the new friend she's found. The nanny sees the dog as a threat to her authority, so she goes about finding out who the rightful owners might are. Turns out the dog is a war dog scheduled to leave right away for the front in Europe and the DOD sends a jeep to pick the dog up at Gretchen's house. Gretchen and a few of her more daring friends decide to go find Wolf at the Army training grounds close by. They find Wolf and ask as to whether they can buy him. The private there tells them that they need to talk to the Secretary of War in Washington DC. This might deter a lesser soul, but Gretchen sets out on foot for Washington. Ultimately the Secretary of War tells Gretchen that Wolf has his part to do in the war effort and that she needs to let him go and do the job he was trained for. All's well that ends well, however, and the Secretary sends Gretchen a puppy to hold her over until Wolf returns from war. We never find out if he does.

Her pal Wolf

[jarrodmcdonald-1 · 22 June 2022]

Every major studio had its own child star during the 1940s. Fox had Shirley Temple...MGM had Margaret O'Brien...Republic had Twinkle Watts...and RKO had Sharyn Moffett. Little Miss Moffett came from a show biz family and had her first movie role, uncredited, at the age of 11 months.

MY PAL WOLF was her first starring role in a feature at the age of seven. This film was a hit and was the template for most of her other projects at the studio.

Like the other girl child stars, she was a combination of innocent and not-so-innocent. She worked opposite stern authority figures, and she was surrounded by plenty of other cute kids. Oh and there was usually a dog in the story.

The dog in this story is a German Shepherd that she calls Wolf. They become fast friends after she finds him in an old abandoned well that he's fallen into. She climbs down into the well using a rope that snaps in half, and she's stuck down there with him, with only some water. There's a suspenseful scene where she helps the animal scale the rocky walls of the well. He's able to reach the top and run for help.

In the next part, a neighbor couple and their kids are lifting her up to safety as Wolf proudly looks on. Moffett's new no-nonsense governess (Jill Esmond) is also there, looking on.

One thing that makes this story more enjoyable than others of its type is Miss Esmond's performance. She's not mean as much as she's proper, and she is perfectly professional in her exchanges with the girl and the dog.

Even better, she has a contentious battle in the home with the other employees. These include the cook (Una O'Connor) and a charming handyman (George Cleveland). There's a hysterical scene where Esmond becomes their "boss" and forces them to wear proper uniforms.

Esmond blames the other adults for Moffett's uncouth manners. She feels they coddle the child too much. More importantly, she does not feel Moffett should have a dog, it's not dignified; she should have a kitten instead.

The heart of this tale is not really the governess or the pooch's connection to the girl, or the other employed at the estate. It's the girl's nearly non-existent relationship with her parents (Leona Maricle and Bruce Edwards) who are often away overseeing their businesses. Their daughter's time in the well is not even enough to bring them to their senses. It will take something more dramatic.

That something is the fact that Wolf, whom the family has adopted, is actually an army dog. He is part of the service's K-9 division, trained to carry messages and medicine across battlefields. He is AWOL and is scheduled to go overseas. Of course, Moffett and her friends don't want to see Wolf go away. He is taken to an army base.

They visit the animal one last time at the military compound, but Wolf digs his way out. So they take him to find the Secretary of War (Edward Fielding) to see if Wolf can be made exempt from military duty. There's a poignant scene where Mr. Secretary explains to Moffett just how valuable Wolf is to the army. She realizes she has to let Wolf go off to Europe.

This is a film I enjoyed quite a lot. It brings the realities of adult fighting down to the level of a child. It explains difficult concepts in simple language that all children can understand. In the situation dramatized on screen, the girl becomes part of the war effort by sacrificing her beloved pet for the good of the country. In the final scene, the army brings her Wolf's son which she will nurture and help grow strong like his father.