On their way to start a new life at a sheep farm in rural Virginia, the Turner family are halted by a wreck on the highway that has claimed the life of a truck driver. Spotting the trucker's now-abandoned collie on the side of the road, they take pity on the dog and adopt her. As the city family copes with the change to rural life, including a feud with a neighboring farm family who resent the city interlopers, the ever-loyal Lassie helps them adjust to their new surroundings.
Acting
Richard Farnsworth's grumpy old man excellence
Practical Effects
Real collie doing actual collie stunts, no CGI nonsense
Cinematography
Virginia countryside so pretty you'll want to farm
Director
Daniel Petrie
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
This was the seventh Lassie theatrical film and the first since 1978's 'The Magic of Lassie'—Hollywood really said 'we need this collie back.'
Richard Farnsworth was 73 here and still doing his own riding; he'd get an Oscar nod the same year for 'The Straight Story.'
US
