Solemplex To me, this movie is perfection.

Beanbioca As Good As It Gets

Crwthod A lot more amusing than I thought it would be.

Scarlet The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Meganeguard One day in Tokyo a litter of golden Labrador retrievers were born in the home of a woman named Mito and amongst these puppies was one who had a bird-shaped birthmark on his belly. It is this puppy that will one day be named Quill. For some reason or another, Ms. Mito wants her puppies to become Seeing Eye dogs, however, because their mother is from an unspectacular background, Mr. Tawada, the manager of a school that trains seeing eye dogs refuses to accept Ms. Mito's puppies. However, after days and days of repeatedly calling, Mr. Tawada finally gives in and says that he will take in one of the puppies.After learning of a way to test to see which puppy will be selected, Ms. Mito calls the puppies over to her and only Quill hesitates when called and because of this he is the one who passes the test, because a seeing eye dog most not rush at the slightest provocation. After proving his ability, Quill is sent to the home of Isamu and Mitsuko Nii where he receives his name, lots of love and attention, and the ability to completely trust humans.After spending a year at the Nii's, Quill is sent to Mr. Tawada's school where he begins his training. A bit slower than other dogs, Quill shows remarkable patience and is willing to wait extraordinarily long periods of time when told to do so. Having discovered Quill's patience, Mr. Tawada pairs the dog up with a man named Watanabe Mitsuru, a man who does not want to rely on anyone, human or animal, to aid him with his disability. However, through a few humorous exchanges, man and dog become friends and soon become almost inseparable. Yet, their days ahead are not just full of days walking in the sunshine and visiting shrines.Yes Quill is a movie about the relationship between a dog and his master and yes it does have some ultra saccharine moments, however, it does not fall into the trap of being a complete sap fest. Each stage of Quill's life, at Ms. Mito's home, The Niis' home, with Mr. Tawada, at Mr. Watanabe's home, is handled delicately and the viewer gets to see the time and care used in training these special animals that aid people. Beautifully scored, Quill will touch the hearts of animal lovers the world over and will also make audiences buy boxes of tissues.

BrigitteD An enchanting Japanese production, "Quill" is at once a documentary and a dramatized account which chronicles the daily life of a guide dog and its integral role in society.From birth, it's obvious that Quill, appropriately named because of the distinctive dark marking on its otherwise light-colored coat, is more special than the rest of its litter. An observation which prompts its owners to enroll Quill into a seeing-eye dog program.And so, we see Quill develop from a curious, playful puppy to a responsible and reliable aid.Quill must also adapt to many transitions and new beginnings as he transfers from its original owners, to the training kennel, and finally, to the family he is assigned to.From there, Quill is paired with a cranky, impatient and stubborn blind man. At first, the man refuses the offer of any help as he wants to maintain his sense of independence. Overtime, they learn to get used to one another, as Quill begins to work with the man, and soon they find each other overcoming many obstacles and experiencing much triumphs together.Later, Quill and the man begin to rely on one another, and form a bond which succeeds in dissolving the man's cold disposition.Eventually, both illness and advanced maturity take their toll on both of them, which sadly and inevitably results in the end of their journey together."Quill" is obviously set apart from the standard "Disney" movies about the friendships born between a human being and his dog. Also, it does not feature stage animals whose only purpose is to act cute and do tricks for the camera. Children will also be able to benefit from this film in a different way as it teaches many valuable lessons about the cycle of life, and raises awareness towards the visually impaired, provoking both subtle humor and sadness in the process.

s_imdb-59 This film deserves to be called the "cutest dog film in history"!Quill is an amazing movie! Its not only a true story, and the camera, well done! Maybe also the best Japanese family movie in years, in this part of the world anyway. Its entertaining, educational (brave quill!), good script, and something you would expect Disney to produce! And if you like dogs, its a must! Each time you will see a guide dog in the future, you will think of quill! What I like about the movie, it makes you think about dogs and their role in our society. Many times dogs don't have a specific role, whereas quill has a duty and bears lots of responsibility. He is a "role" model for his fellow dogs, many of which are taken to the hairdresser or dog shrink!

Harry T. Yung Spoilers This little movie has attracted a lot of attention in town, hitting #2 in the box office last week. Local film critics, the lazy ones at least, have resorted to saying things like `have lots of tissue ready' or some such cliché. Truth of the matter is, this one is not a tear-jerker.If anything, Quill is more like a documentary, a slightly dramatized documentary similar to Touching the Void. Without the contrived, crafted emotional bumps seen often in Hollywood flicks, this Japanese film takes us gently along the life of Quill, the seeing-eye dog, through many partings: with his original parents, `adopted' parents, trainer, and finally `partner'. Sharing with Quill his small, humble moments of joy and sadness, we also come to understand a little more the role of a seeing-eye dog. We are reminded of the inevitability of death, but also the zest and joy of living. In the end, without the help of stultified tear-jerking formula, our eyes would maybe moist a little at the friendship between a man and a dog.One inconsequential note on the background music. In the scene of the man and the dog going for a final walk together, the background music is the beautiful Bach-Gounod's version of Ave Maria (hope I got this right). Just by sheer coincidence, I recently watched Raging Bull, in which the same piece of music is used in the opening credit, with markedly different effects.