"Heck's Way Home" is a delightfully funny look at the adventures a dog has to go through to get back to the boy he loves. Luke Neufield (Chad Krowchuk) is being moved -- all the way from Manitoba to Australia! His father, Rick (Michael Riley), has accepted a job down there, so the entire family is moving. Unfortunately, the night before they leave, Rick's dog, Heck, can't be found, and the family is forced to leave without him.
Produced by Atlantis (before it became Alliance-Atlantis), "Heck's Way Home" was originally produced for CTV and the Canadian Family Channel, but has been released on video as well. It boasts some of Canada's most talented actors, including Gabe Khouth ("Northwood"), Michael Riley ("Power Play"), and Don Francks ("La Femme Nikita"). The show is very well done, and amusing for more than just children. It's rare that a made-for-television Canadian movie with little to no violence, swearing, or gratuitous sex makes it's mark, but "Heck's Way Home" did just that.
The Adventures of Shirley Holmes
Not unlike the "Encyclopedia Brown" series, "The Adventures of Shirley Holmes" focusses on young Shirley, the great-grand-niece of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's famous Sherlock Holmes. Meredith Henderson started the role at 12, and as the series goes into it's fourth (and final) season, has two Gemini nominations behind her belt.
The show focuses on Shirley, who is bright, kooky, and prepared for everything -- her sleuthing kit contains everything from a magnifying glass to state-of-the-art cell phones and laptops. Although the plot lines are often stretching the realms of believability, both Henderson herself and the excellent writing behind the series lend credence to it. The writers have managed to successfully combine both action and comedy, something that tends to fail on Canadian television ("John Woo's Once a Thief" being the perfect example).
Shirley is aided in her sleuthing by Bo Sawchuk (Sherlock's Dr. Watson, Encyclopedia's Sally), and wins despite the efforts of her nemesis, Molly Hardy (Sherlock's Moriarty, Encyclopedia's Bugs Meany). For many years, there was one mystery that plagued her more than any other -- the mystery of her mother's disappearance -- but that question was finally answered for fans in the third season.
Seen in over 80 countries (including Australia, the US, and Great Britain), the show has been dubbed into French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, German, Dutch, Norweigian, Polish and Turkish.
Go To Page: 1
