MartinHafer While I have seen more classic Hollywood movies than most anyone alive, I have only come to watch any of the Lassie films recently. I had assumed they'd be schmaltzy messes...and, apparently, I was wrong. After thoroughly enjoying the first film, "Lassie Come Home", I decided to try another Lassie film, "Hills of Home"...the fourth Lassie film. With seven in all, I still have five more MGM Lassie pictures to go.This story has nothing to do with the previous Lassie stories. Oddly, this one finds Lassie as a damaged doggy, as his new master abuses the dog because it is a lousy sheepdog and won't go in the water if needed. Soon the kindly local doctor (Edmund Gwen) buys the dog and the rest of the film is mostly about his life in rural 19th century Scotland tending to the sick and dying...with Lassie as his constant companion and helper.Like the first Lassie film, this one has a lot of polish and was made in Technicolor. It also features fine supporting actors in many of the leading roles--giving these wonderful actors a chance to shine. In fact, several were from the first Lassie film as well-- Gwen, Donald Crisp and Rhys Williams. Additional actors rounding out the main cast were Janet Leigh and Tom Drake. All in all, a fine and entertaining film...and one that might be best seen with some Kleenex nearby just in case! If I have any complaints about the picture it's that just about everyone seems inexplicably angry all the time...which is kinda weird!

ccthemovieman-1 Well, at least it's nicely filmed with some good shots of Scotland. I say, "at least" because this Lassie film was a huge disappointment. I grew up watching the fine television series and thought the movie - especially with the human cast featuring Edmund Gwenn, Donald Crisp and Janet Leigh - would be even better.Wrong. In fact, the first 30-40 minutes were so bad, I never finished the film. It was boring and annoying. Lassie is afraid of water so the dog's owner, Gwenn, constantly is angry with the dog. Lassie, meanwhile, whimpers and cries the whole time. The whole thing gets irritating, fast! To be fair, I should have stuck with it. You just know that Lassie will overcome his fear and things will turn out well, as always, I'm sure it got better than the first half that I watched. Nonetheless, filmmaker should learn what sports teams realize the hard way - you have to play hard and well the whole game - not just one half and this film's first half stunk enough so that at least one reviewer went home at halftime.

Neil Doyle Although this is a minor Lassie film, it did open at the famous Radio City Music Hall in 1948, where the showplace must have decided it was the perfect theater to show this family film--in a theater that catered to wholesome films above all others.It's a charmer, helped considerably by the performances of EDMUND GWENN, as an old-fashioned Scottish doctor who acquires a dog who is afraid of water, and LASSIE as the collie who has to overcome his fear of water when his master is in danger and needs him to swim for help.DONALD CRISP, as Gwenn's loyal friend, and young JANET LEIGH and TOM DRAKE as the love interest, form a pleasant supporting cast responding well to Fred M. Wilcox's able direction. All the resources of the MGM studio went into recreating the Scottish settings and atmosphere that pervade the film, so much so that we can forgive the occasional lapses in the Scottish accents.It passes the time pleasantly, but is not the typical Lassie film with him displaying all sorts of intelligence and courage. And this time, EDMUND GWENN actually steals scenes from the famous collie, holding much of the spotlight with a warm and easy performance as the crusty old doctor.

tad58 They don't make'em like this any more, they can't. A picture postcard of a time long lost is captured in this beautiful film. The characters are not perfect, they have flaws like real people. Edmund Gwenn turns in a performance as Dr.McClure that lets the viewer in and identify with him as he relates to difficult people and takes anger in stride from the distraught and scared citizens of his village. Lassie is presented as frightened and imperfect also, something new to me since I had seen only the television features showing this dog as brave, smart, and resourceful. The relationship that develops between the doctor and his dog is fulfilling on every level and the responsibility he feels towards those who depend on him is inspirational. Catch this if you can, you'll find it worthy of your attention.