About Michael Edwards
Location: Dallas, Texas
Occupation: Knife Sharpener
Bio: I was born in 1518, in the village of Glenfinnan, on the shores of Loch Shiel...and I am Immortal. (cough…cough) (You know, writing a silly origin like this makes me think of the time I was at a Star Trek Convention and saw a balding, overweight guy in a Starfleet Uniform on a stage say, “Hello, I am Captain Hochsteader from the USS Klondike.” I wanted so badly to say, “Noooo, you’re Melvin Goldfarb, Accountant from Plano.”)
Favorite movie: Hmmmm... It's a toss up between Schindler's List and Cabin Boy. (Kinda makes you wonder about my ability to review DVD’s don’t it?). Actually, if I use the criteria I used above of “never get tired of watching…etc…”: The Road Warrior, The World According to Garp, Creator, Terminator 2, Somewhere in Time (If I wanna get reaaallly weepy)
Greatest video game accomplishment: Buying and beating the first ever home PONG game. Haven’t really played much else… Well, there was the time I died on the first level of MediEvil. Or the time I died at the beginning of Resident Evil. Of, course my favorite was dying while playing Tetris.
If you could have any one superpower, what would it be?: The power of Super Speed. There just never seems to be enough time to do everything I want to get done. And I can never get anywhere fast enough. (However, this would have to be combined with certain degrees of Super Agility and Invulnerability so as not to have to wear Band-aid Brand Nuclear Knee-Pads.)
Posts: 427
More from this author
Ahhh…. the beautiful land of Jamaica. A tourist mecca where you can hang out on the beach (normal or nude), go fishing, diving, play golf (if you’re really that boring of a person), go cliff-diving, or check out the sled dogs. Wait a minute!!! Are you irie, mon? Check out the sled dogs? That’s right, Jamaica doesn’t just have a bob sled team, which you know about if you’ve ever seen Cool Runnings, they have an honest to gosh dog sledding team.
Danny Melville of Chukka Caribbean Adventures was looking for something different to offer tourists coming to the islands. He thought something so far removed from their actual world would make for something unusual to arouse tourist’s curiosity. Additionally, it would help enhance the economy by offering jobs to those sorely in need. With backing from singer Jimmy Buffett (of “Margaritaville” fame), Melville was able make his idea a reality. Filmmaker Andrea Stewart though the story would make for a great documentary, so she spent a lot of time with Melville, the dogs (who were adopted from local JSPCAS), and trainers Rick and Annette Johnson getting the story. The result is “Sun Dogs.”
Sun Dogs introduces us to pretty much everyone involved with the project, showing us both its ups and downs. For example, while this offers a great opportunity for dogs that might have otherwise been put to sleep, none of them can actually attend any competitions outside of Jamaica. Citing health reasons, dogs can leave the country, but they can never return. Still, the islanders who get involved are able to train at home and abroad and their success rate is as good as any professional dog sledding teams outside of the country.
The DVD offers up a few featurettes, including a look at Buffett’s involvement, lessons in teaching your dog to pull a sled, the JSPCA, and how the Jamaican is received around the world. Additionally, there is a little dog-ography for each of the lovable canines.
I really enjoyed the documentary about these scrappy dogs and their coaches, but admittedly there were too many times that the film strayed from the subject and focused on the more impoverished areas of Jamaica. Not that this isn’t a subject important enough to bring to the masses, I’m just not sure so much of it belonged in a film that was supposed to deal solely with the Sun Dogs.
I have been on the Chukka Tour and I had to say I was quite impressed with the “sun dogs”. When the tour guide informed us about this, it was something I had to do. Come on this is the country that had a bobsled team and no snow. They did not disappoint, those Jamaicans seem like they can do anything.