Isle of Dogs (2018)
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A boy journeys to a remote island to find his missing dog following a city-wide ban.
The story
In the year 2038, a canine flu outbreak leads the authoritarian mayor of the Japanese city of Megasaki to banish all dogs to Trash Island. Atari, the mayor's nephew, seeks to rescue his beloved dog, Spots, who was among the first deported. After hijacking a plane to reach the island, Atari is rescued by a pack of dogs led by a stray named Chief. Together, they navigate the dangerous terrain of the island to locate Spots and find a way to reunite the animals with their owners while navigating the political tensions of the mainland.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Following a canine flu outbreak in 2038, Mayor Kenji Kobayashi of Megasaki banishes all dogs to Trash Island. His nephew, Atari, hijacks a plane to find his dog, Spots. On the island, Atari joins a pack of dogs led by Chief. They discover that Spots is alive but held by a tribe of dogs who were test subjects in a secret lab. Meanwhile, a student named Tracy Walker investigates a conspiracy involving the mayor's role in the outbreak. The plot reveals that the mayor intentionally caused the flu to exterminate dogs. Ultimately, Atari and the dogs return to Megasaki during the mayor's re-election. They present a cure for the flu and a haiku that moves the mayor to confess his crimes. The ban is lifted, the truth is revealed, and the dogs are reunited with their owners, while Atari and Tracy become a couple.
- First release year
- 2018
- Runtime (minutes)
- 101
- Production countries
- United States; United Kingdom
- Original languages
- English; Japanese
- Directors
- Wes Anderson
- Writers
- Wes Anderson · screenplay; Wes Anderson · story; Roman Coppola · story; Jason Schwartzman · story; Kunichi Nomura · story
- Cast and characters
- Bryan Cranston; Koyu Rankin; Edward Norton; Liev Schreiber; Bill Murray; Bob Balaban; Jeff Goldblum; Scarlett Johansson; Kunichi Nomura; Tilda Swinton; Ken Watanabe; Akira Ito
- Genres
- science fiction; comedy
- Themes
- translation; corruption
- Tone and mood
- deadpan humor
- Premise and plot tags
- stop-motion; dystopian
- Reception
- The film received critical acclaim for its animation, story, musical score, and deadpan humor, while facing criticism regarding its portrayal of Japanese culture.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 82 · scale: 100 · review count: 55; PostTrak · score: 88
- Awards and nominations
- Silver Bear · Best Director · Won
- Production trivia
- It is the second stop-motion film by Wes Anderson.; It is the only 20th Century Fox Animation film released by Fox Searchlight.; The film features a score with 22 tracks, 15 of which were composed by Alexandre Desplat.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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