A GOOD DAY TO CRY HARD

s a lifelong dog-lover, and the owner of a Saluki/ greyhound cross, I’m an easy mark when it comes to Sad Dog movies. But nothing has so relentlessly punished my emotional weak point as Lasse Hallström’s . Based on the true story of a loyal Japanese Akita called Hachiko, stars Richard Gere as Parker Wilson, a music professor who forms a fast bond with a stray Akita puppy he finds on a train station platform. Akitas can be stubborn creatures, but Parker earns Hachi’s affection, which Hachi returns with unwavering dedication, even making his own way to the station every day to meet Parker as he arrives home on the 5pm commuter train. Tragically, Parker suffers a fatal stroke one day at work, but Hachi continues to wait, with steadfast commitment, for his best friend who will never step off that platform. The true kicker is the film’s 10-year time jump. A decade passes and Parker’s widow returns to town to visit her husband’s grave, where she’s overwhelmed to see an elderly, infirm Hachi still making the daily pilgrimage to the station to greet his master. Parker and Hachi’s climactic