I've always had a fondness for this picture. Nostalgia, heart, and the bond between human and pet are the key factors. You can't go wrong with a heartwarming film like this one especially if you're an animal lover.This is a remake of an earlier Disney film "The Incredible Journey". Many elements from that film end up here. In the original version, there is an off screen narrator, who describes what the animals are up to and what they're thinking. In the remake, the animals are given a voice (literally), so the audience has a better connection with the characters, which I think makes the remake stronger in that aspect. This is also one of those animal films where the filmmakers don't make the animals' mouths move via computer, which I also think is a plus, because they're more natural and believable as pets. A voice artist that conveys what the animal is thinking and by its action is all that is necessary, and should be done more often.The score and the scenery also make this a strong film. The pans and shots of the Sierra Nevada are captivating even by today's standards. The scenes of when the animals are in peril are tightly edited. Thankfully, the Animal Humane Society had a hand in those scenes.Remarkably, there have been real life accounts of pets reuniting with their owners after making journeys that took hundreds of miles. Perhaps these kind of stories inspired the source material. The viewer has a strong sense of relief and joy when the pets reunite with their families.I watched both versions growing up (they were released on VHS at the same time) and enjoyed them both, but I prefer the remake, because there is a greater connection and feel for the animal characters. (The original was out of print for several years before being released on DVD in the late 2000's)This film should be enjoyed by the entire family and by dog and cat lovers alike.

This is a story of three animals who become lost and must make their way back home. There is a cat, Sassy, who is mouthy and annoying. Chance, an immature, careless, reckless dog. And Shadow, the mature, well traveled voice of reason. Of course, these animals talk to each other. Two of them are determined. One, Chance (who lives up to his name) gets careless and overly adventurous, putting the others in danger. Shadow is an optimist. He believes sincerely that they will eventually be found and returned to their families. It's a good story and the voices are superimposed. They are not made to talk with some twisted mouth, to look like humans. This is a great movie for children. It is about love and compassion and commitment to an ideal. It also expresses the idea of never giving up.

I first saw this movie when my children were young in the early 80's. Now 30 years later I am enjoying it again with my granddaughter. For a two year old she sits spellbound through it from beginning to end. She is always concerned when Shadow falls from the railroad tracks in to the mud and cant get out and encourages him to keep trying. My favorite scene is the suspense building as you wait for the animals to come in to view in the end and return to their owners. Waiting for Shadow to make his appearance always has the tears running down my cheeks. I know he is going to make it but it is still an emotional scene as he gains speed running to his owner. I had to order this movie to add to my granddaughters collection.

I remember seeing most of this family adventure movie as a kid. It was released early in 1993, and I think I saw it on video later that year. Towards the end, I came across a scene which I found too overwhelmingly sad, and I guess I didn't watch what little was left of the film, though I did watch the sequel, "Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco", from beginning to end shortly after it was released on video in 1996. I believe it's been nearly seventeen years since I watched any of "Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey", but after all these years, I still remember it. After renting it this month, I can say I've finally seen it all. While it's not what I would call a bad movie, I was definitely not as impressed as many others clearly have been.Chance is a naïve young Bulldog who was once stuck at the pound, a place he hated, but is now owned by a boy named Jamie Seaver. He lives with two other domestic animals: Shadow, a wise old Golden Retriever owned by Jamie's stepbrother, Peter Burnford; and Sassy, an arrogant Himalayan cat owned by Peter's sister, Hope. After Laura Burnford and Bob Seaver get married, meaning that the two families are now one, they go on a trip to San Francisco and the pets are left at a friend's ranch. Chance, Shadow, and Sassy do not understand what has just happened, and don't realize that their owners will come back, so they think they've been abandoned! Shadow decides to leave the ranch and set out to find the family, and Sassy and Chance soon follow! The three of them find themselves on a journey through the wilderness, facing the dangers of this terrain! Chance's lack of experience definitely won't help him on this adventure.The silly things Chance does and the rivalry between Chance and Sassy are meant to be comical, which they sometimes are, but not usually. Chance's antics can also get tiring after a short while. I didn't care much for these two characters, and don't think Michael J. Fox and Sally Field did a very good job providing their respective voices. Don Ameche as Shadow might be the only decent voice-over of the three, and this character is the most likable of the leads. After I started watching "Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey" this month, I soon realized how boring I found the film, and that didn't change until I got to the part where the journey begins. There's lots of beautiful scenery through the mountainous wilderness and the adventure of the three domestic animals is often exciting. Shadow's wisdom can be another intriguing aspect of the film, and some scenes are fairly touching, such as the Golden Retriever saving a little girl lost in the forest. However, there's still more weak humour during the adventure, and the scenes with the humans looking for the animals are certainly not as interesting as the ones showing the pets on their journey. None of the human characters really stand out.With a spoiler warning, I will tell you which part made me really sad all those years ago, and the ending that follows. If you haven't seen the film, you might not want to read on, but if you have, then maybe you've already guessed. It's the part where the three pets are almost home, but Shadow falls into a pit and injures his leg, and it appears he can't get out! When I watched "Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco", I knew the aging dog obviously got out of the pit somehow, since he's in that sequel. After over a decade and a half, I finally found out that "Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey" doesn't show how Shadow gets out, but at the end, we see the three animals returning to their owners, even though it takes the Golden Retriever longer to show up than it does for the other two. Anyway, overall, this particular animal movie is hit-and-miss, with an exciting adventure and cute animal stars, but also with several significant shortcomings.