Plenty to Like, Plenty to Dislike

Highly Overrated But Still Good

Better Late Then Never

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

I grew up watching this movie multiple, multiple times as a kid. I had not seen it in probably 15 years when my mother dug it up on Netflix last night and I got to relive this dog-lovers classic. But unlike the last time I watched, I did no research done on the actual true story...but that's for later.Balto is the story of a half-dog/half-wolf who is the subject of intolerance by the living beings of Nome in the year 1925. Even though he has friends like Boris, the Russian Goose, and Muk & Luk, 2 goofy, fun loving polar bears, He desperately tries to fit in, but no matter what he does, the townsfolk don't trust his wolf side and the dogs of the town wish he would simply cease to exist, especially the vicious husky Steele. But when a sickness overtakes a wave of children in the town, including young Rosie, who's dog Jenna takes a liking to Balto, Balto takes it upon himself to help save the children, with Boris informing him "A dog cannot make this journey alone....but maybe a wolf can."Now with every "based on a true story" line there's got to be alterations to the story. and some alterations, like adding in comic relief in the form of a Russian goose and a british-accented polar bear are totally acceptable.But there are details that are left out. For example, The sled run was not made by one dog team, it was actually multiple mushers and 2 leaders - Togo (who we can assume is whom Steele is based upon.) and Balto, a trained, single breed Siberan husky. Togo ran most of the run, but Balto only ran the last leg of the course, and therefore got all the fame. If you really want to know the true story, just dig up the trivia section.The voice actors do a really good job, although Kevin Bacon sounds too good to play the role of a stray dog like Balto. Bob Hoskins definitely got the Russian snow goose role down very well, although having Robin Williams there would've been really, really fun (But too recognizable...and expensive.) Bridget Fonda for Jenna, She's got the beautiful girl voice. Phil Collins, the guy from Genesis for Muk & Luk, he's not bad but it feels out of place because of his british accent. Rick Moranis & Dave Thomas (Bob & Doug McKenzie) Would've been perfect, but they came later for brother bear. Jim Cummings? What can you say, the guy's a Voice-over legend but you can hear the traces of Tigger in his voice (Tigger from Winnie the pooh, Cummings also provides his voice) And finally, the uncredited Frank Welker as the bear. No really. give him credit. He made a killer angry bear.Animation-wise, it's very well done. Amblination/DreamWorks always have been able to hold a candle up to Disney (even though Disney's got the firehose to douse it.) look for a cute little reference to E.T. during one scene.As long as it's still up on Netflix, give this one a view.

Perhaps the most disgusting act of whitewashing ever committed in modern cinema, the dogs aren't even real dogs. They're animated. While most may not notice in their first viewing, if you pay close attention, you can hear that the characters aren't even voiced by real dogs, but actual people. All in all Balto is a desperate attempt to ride the coat-tails of its' far superior predecessor, Snow Buddies. I would not recommend to even the most die-hard snow animal enthusiasts.

i love this movie to death, its an amazing story with a great plot and good characters. i would recommend this movie to anyone who loves dogs and/or wolves. overall, 10 out of 10. while the original movie was great the two other movies, Balto wolf quest and Balto Wings Of Change where no where near as good as the original. i won't say that there bad, there just a let down compared to the original. the story is heart warming and nice, in fact, ever since i saw the movie i couldn't get enough. i first saw it last summer and was instantly hooked, mostly because i love talking dogs. while the movies are meant for young children, if you love cute stories and cute characters, this is the movie for you.

I think it's obvious to see why Balto was ignored during it's theater release, coming out not to long after Toy Story (which is a better film). But I'm glad to see that it's popularity has grown in the 16 years since it's release.Balto is a half wolf, half dog that is basically an outcast in his town of Nome Alaska. When the children of the town develop a fatal disease, a sled team must go and receive medacine. Unfortunattly the team get's lost and now Balto must go find them and help them get the medicine back to Nome.I'm not going to lie and say the movie is flawless, the story is nothing new, the characters are kinda bland and the comedy reliefs are a little more annoying than funny, thankfully they don't follow Balto throughout his journey.With nice animation, a good cast, and a solid story, Balto is worth picking up.