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6.2/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6.2/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Law of the Wild remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you have seventy minutes to spare and want to watch a dog and a horse solve a murder, then yes, Law of the Wild is worth your time today. You will love it if you miss the days when animals were the smartest characters on screen, but if you hate cheap 1930s westerns with terrible sound, you will probably hate this.
The plot is basically a massive excuse to have Rex the Wonder Horse run around and look majestic. Meanwhile, Rin Tin Tin Jr. is running alongside him, looking incredibly happy just to be included in the shot.
The human story is about a guy named John Sheldon getting framed for a murder he obviously didn't do. Honestly, the human actors are so boring I kept forgetting there names while watching.
The bad guy is Frank Nolan, played by Richard Cramer with the kind of scowl that tells you he probably kicks puppies for fun. He wants to steal Rex because Rex is a super-horse who can win a race to pay for John's legal defense. Yes, you read that right. They are going to race a wild horse to hire a lawyer.
It is exactly the kind of silly logic that makes these old Mascot pictures so much fun if you're in the right mood. It reminds me a bit of the dusty, cheap atmosphere in The Silent Man, where everyone just looks sweaty and the plot moves purely on vibes.
There is this one hilarious scene where Rex is supposed to be angry, so they obviously just threw some dirt near his hooves to make him kick. You can actually see a guy's hand briefly enter the frame on the left, trying to shoo the horse into the shot. 🎥
It's these little mistakes that make me love these old movies. They just didn't have the time or money to do a second take, and it shows.
Rin Tin Tin Jr. is a good boy, but he doesn't have the screen presence of his famous dad. He mostly just barks at bushes and looks slightly confused when the actors start yelling at each other.
There is also a weird cameo by Ben Turpin, the famous cross-eyed comedian, which feels like it belongs in a completely different movie. He just pops up, does his funny face bit, and the movie goes right back to the serious horse drama.
The pacing is a bit broken because this was originally a 12-part serial chopped up into a feature film. Every ten minutes, there is a weirdly abrupt pause where a cliffhanger used to be.
It makes the whole experience feel like a fever dream where you keep nodding off and waking up to the same horse running across the same field. But hey, if you want to see a dog and a horse team up to defeat a guy in a dusty cowboy hat, this is a masterpiece in its own little way.
IMDb —
1918
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