Megan Leavey

I can’t believe I gave three stars to Max. The 2015 film, about a U. S. Marines’ war dog who gets adopted by his handler’s little brother, was overly long, with a cheesy plot and simplistic characters. Plus the dog was a shameless over- actor. After the review came out in print, I had an urge to roll it up and smack him with it.

OK, not really. I blame the writer/director. Bad filmmaker! Fortunately, Megan Leavey has none of the failings of the well- meaning Max. For starters, it’s based on the true story of a U. S. Marine ( played by Kate Mara) whose bond with her bomb- sniffing dog became so strong that she petitioned the Marine Corps to let her adopt him.

As told in the screenplay by Pamela Gray, Annie Mumolo and Tim Lovestedt, Megan joined the Marines somewhat randomly, after the death of a close friend in 2001 left her feeling unhappy and restless. She’s clearly not a people person, but when she applies for dog-handling duties, her superiors start her out with a tin can on a string; more evidence if you needed it that the military is industrious in giving people complexes. ( Common plays her commanding officer, one of those loud- boss types whom we gradually learn is all bark.)

Megan eventually graduates to handling a real dog, and soon enough ships out to Ramadi in central Iraq, where she learns that there’s a bounty on dog handlers and an even bigger one on female dog handlers. Even Rex’s name is top secret, lest an insurgent call the dog over and kill him, or even kidnap the animal and send him back to base carrying explosives.

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite, whose credits include the 2013 documentary Blackfish, balances the film’s action and emotional beats nicely, although it must be said the defining battle shies away from too much gore; The Hurt Dog Locker this isn’t. ( That’s not a criticism; it makes the film more kid- friendly, if still quite intense.)

There’s a mild love story here, between Megan and another Marine ( Ramon Rodriguez), but it’s really so much story filler. Besides, she’s a Yankees fan and he loves the Mets, so it’ ll obviously never work. Dramatically, the crux of the story is the age- old bond between a girl and her dog. And if the film gets a little preachy about it, well, it’s earned its moments of excess.

I’m going to give Megan Leavey the same rating as Max, with the understanding that you’ll know which movie I’m referring to when I say: Who’s a good dog? ∂∂∂

THE DEFINING BATTLE SHIES AWAY FROM TOO MUCH GORE.