Dambuster Dog...a Descision

[Garry Russell]

This is a follow on from a much debated subject some time ago now..should the dog in the new Dambusters film keep it's real name.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-li ... e-13727908


For those in the colonies who can't see this...they're calling the dog Digger in the new film.... which seems to me to be taking longer to make that the war took to win

Stephen Fry who is writing the screenplay says there is no way a dog called the 'N' word would be acceptable in the US.

[Paul K]

Stephen Fry who is writing the screenplay says there is no way a dog called the 'N' word would be acceptable in the US.

Funny how US audiences found the word 'nigger' perfectly acceptable in films like Pulp Fiction and Apocalypse Now, and used in its most pejorative context too.

There is an awful lot of up yet to be grown.

[dodger]

Hi,

Well i think we all knew that would happen from the moment it came out that they were to do a remake of the film,

I am 69 yrs old and have seen most films about the war ,real and screen but i will give this one a miss as there is only one Dam Busters film as far as i'm concerned,

Each to his own,

Cheers,

Roger.

[Garry Russell]

Should just be accepted as a thing of it's time

Language evolves and it's possible that one day Digger could be taken to me something offensive in the world of the future

You would have hoped that the powers that be had more pressing things to use their adrenaline on

This was discussed at length a long time ago Roger

The difference now, and the reason for this thread is the annoucement of what they are going to do.

[DarrenL]

Sounds like Mr Fry is using his play on words skills here, the dog was a Black Retriever. The new name Digger is the name given by New Zealanders to soldiers, New Zealand's rugby team are know as the All Blacks and of course it rhymes. Sort of works, if you have to change the name it's the best option.

Or am I analysing it too much

[TobyV]

I like the 50s film but it is let down a little by the "special effects" of the day. Still I think they managed to wheel out a few Lincolns (?) to film it whereas I guess we'll have to make do with entirely CGI and a few mockups. The acting needs to be pretty good and of course in the 1950s they still had the awfully awfully accents and stiff upper lip that has been lost since.

I think changing the dog's name is completely silly. If the story was about a bunch of black guys who had a white dog they had named "honky", I wouldn't be complaining. Humanity is not perfect, it evolves and it moves on. You demonstrate that better by showing attitudes of the past and letting the audience realise how things are now by comparison, than by pretending the past was different IMHO. However, I asked a black African colleague a couple of years ago whether he thought naming the dog "Nigger" in the film would be racist and he thought so, so oh well

[Garry Russell]

HI Toby

Yep a few Lincolns in there and in the film they train with dambuster modified Lancs before they're delivered..but it was agood film and when I first saw it in the 1960's the special effects looked OK as that was pretty normal contempory stuff.

[airboatr]

Excuse me for saying that I find the word digger highly offensive being that the work I do requires digging trenches to lay the pipes required for the circuits I install.

[Garry Russell]

Exactly mate

Whatever name is used it can easily offend the average Joe

[Paul K]

There were Lincolns in the original Dambusters film ? I dont recall seeing any.