Lassie

Set in a Yorkshire mining village shortly before the Second World War, Lassie centres on the Carraclough family, whose worsening finances force them to part with their beloved collie. Joe, the young son, is especially close to the dog, and the buyer is a wealthy duke with a taste for fine animals who lives far away in Scotland. Unable to settle in her new surroundings, Lassie escapes and begins a long journey back towards the family she knows as home, meeting both danger and unexpected kindness along the way.

Charles Sturridge directed and wrote the screenplay, marking his third feature after Aria (1987) and Longitude (2000). Peter O'Toole plays the Duke, with Samantha Morton and John Lynch as Sarah and Sam Carraclough, Peter Dinklage as Rowlie, Hester Odgers as Cilla and Celyn Jones as Snickers, among a credited cast of 28.

Released in December 2005, the film had a budget of 20 million US dollars and took about 6 million US dollars worldwide, a modest return. On IMDb it holds 6.7/10 from roughly 4,900 votes, and on TMDB 6.4/10 from about 150 votes. A critics' rating of 7.4/10 from 69 reviews places professional assessment noticeably above the audience scores on both platforms.