Having never read London's book, I'm restricted to commenting on this film in relative isolation. That said, I have trouble believing that the author intended his story to be a comedy. There's a lot of playing for laughs in this movie, early on in particular, which means there are some jarring shifts in tone throughout, especially in the latter half. Also, this is Disney, so things are highly bowdlerized. The most problematic aspect may be in the character of Buck himself (and the other animals as well). Considering the "call of the wild" strongly implies a move towards something natural, it is then somewhat incongruous--if not absurd--to have CGI animals displaying very anthropomorphic actions, sensibilities, and even facial expressions. All in all, this flick is strictly for kids; no viewer with an adult's vaguely critical eye will not find that eye rolling at any number of points throughout the movie. The film earns a MEOW--no species-ism from the Bad Cat--for being technically well done, but conceptually this work leaves a lot to be desired.
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