Call Of The Wild (1935)

Set in 1900 Alaska, a gold prospector (Clark Gable) joins forces with a friend (Jack Oakie) recently released from prison to follow a map to a gold mine. They take with them a vicious St. Bernard, who bonds with the prospector. On their way to the mine, they come across a married woman (Loretta Young) stranded in the snow. Loosely based on the novel by Jack London and directed by William A. Wellman (THE HIGH AND THE MIGHTY). London's novel focuses on Buck, the St. Bernard and his adventures but the film version uses only one of the story's thread and instead focuses on Gable's character and adds a woman (Young) for romantic interest that is not in London's original novel. What we're left with isn't quite Jack London but it's a solid entertainment nonetheless. The screenplay doesn't give us a traditional happy ending but Wellman keeps it gritty throughout. As Buck, the St. Bernard gives a marvelous performance, totally believable while either snarling, showing affection or expressing conflict. With Reginald Owen (suitably slimy) and Sidney Toler.