Must-See DVD: White Dog!

Out this week is must-see DVD: White Dog (Criterion). This legendary lost film by director Sam Fuller (Pickup on South Street, Shock Corridor) based on a non-fiction Romain Gary story was shelved by Paramount Studios in 1981 because of its inflammatory content. Kristy McNichol plays an actress who rescues a white German Shepherd only to discover it’s been trained to attack blacks. Paul Winfield plays the trainer to whom she brings the dog in order to “deprogram” it in this incendiary metaphor for racism in America. What’s surprising is that the years have not diminished its power to inflame the brain and disturb. The disc comes with a glorious transfer and interview with co-writer Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential) plus a discussion with dog trainer Karl Lewis Miller and two beautifully written essays on the film -- one by J. Hoberman and the other by Armond White.