A yellow happy face balloon stares out of the back window of a moving car…
…Next to it, ten-year-old Jenny stares sadly back at her mother, Annie, who waves goodbye from the curb. Annie has lost her job. Sending Jenny away is the only way the single mom can get back on her feet.
Along the drive, Jenny makes eye contact with a dog that seems to feel like she does — alone and lonely. She soon meets the dog’s owner, Thomas, who turns out to be Jenny’s great-grandfather! They hit it off right away, over puzzles, photography, and a general dislike of Jenny’s irascible grandmother, Lucy.
Jenny learns that her mother has found a job far away. At first, she thinks this means her mom will call for her, and Jenny spirals into confusion and hurt when she discovers this isn’t true. Upset, she takes off and brings Toby-the-dog with her. But Thomas, without his dog to watch out for him, trips and breaks a hip. Jenny slips on a rock in the creek and breaks an ankle!
Jenny sends Toby-the-dog for help—Toby alerts her grandmother to Thomas’ fall, but Lucy blames the dog for Thomas’ injury. She ties Toby up and calls Animal Control.
Alas! Only Toby knows where Jenny is, hurt and alone in the woods by the creek!
Jenny is finally found but is ridden with guilt over taking Toby with her when she ran away. It’s because of her that her great-grandfather fell and broke his hip. Her mother is called, and when Annie arrives and watches Jenny admit her wrongdoings, she finally unloads guilt that has kept her from her family for years.
Old rifts are healed, and Jenny and Annie move in with Thomas so he can live at home and keep his beloved pets with him. Toby-the-dog likes to sing; it’s his pack mentality of celebrating his family and making sure they are all accounted for. He howls, proving to everyone that animals know best—
Forgiveness is always possible if we just open our hearts and let each other in.
Genre: Family Movie
Official Selection
Shortlisted
