One of the most expensive of Don
Bluth's animated cartoon features, All Dogs Go to Heaven was also among the
most successful. Set in late-1930s New Orleans, the story centers upon a
rogueish German shepherd named Charlie B. Barkin, who is accidentally killed
early in the proceedings. Since he isn't a likely candidate for heaven,
Charlie is given a reprieve and sent back to Earth, there to perform at
least one good deed. He gets his chance when a little orphan girl named
Anne-Marie is kidnapped by his old buddies. All Dogs Go to Heaven is
virtually a textbook of Don Bluth's strengths and weaknesses. On the plus
side, we are offered superb animation, excellent background art, appealing
characters and toe-tappin' songs; on the minus side, we have a plotline that
doesn't hold together, characters that start out on one level and never
grow, and too many extraneous sequences. All in all, however, the plusses
outweigh the minuses-and besides, the film treats us to the considerable
vocal skills of Burt Reynolds (as Charlie), Dom DeLuise, Charles Nelson
Reilly, Vic Tayback, Melba Moore, Loni Anderson and a host of others. All
Dogs Go to Heaven was the first production of the Dublin-based Sullivan
Bluth Studios.| Burt Reynolds | Charlie [Voice] |
| Judith Barsi | Anne-Marie [Voice] |
| Dom DeLuise | Itchy [Voice] |
| Vic Tayback | Carface [Voice] |
| Charles Nelson Reilly | Killer [Voice] |
| Melba Moore | Whippet Angel [Voice] |
| Candy Devine | Vera [Voice] |
| Ken Page | King Gator [Voice] |
| Loni Anderson | Flo [Voice] |
| Mark Swan | [Voice] |
| Nigel Pegram | Sir Reginald [Voice] |
| Godfrey Quigley | Terrier [Voice] |
| Dick Zondag | [Voice] |
| John K. Carr | [Voice] |
| Earleen Carey | Kate [Voice] |
| Dan Molina | [Voice] |
| Anna Manahan | Stella Dallas |
| Robert Fuller | Harold [Voice] |
| Dan Kuenster | [Voice] |
Genre/Type - Children's/Family, Adventure, Animated Musical
Produced by - Goldcrest Films International / Sullivan Bluth Studios Ireland
Release - Nov 17, 1989 (USA)
Released by - MGM-UA Distribution
Running time - 85 min.
All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 (1996, Larry Leker, Paul Sabella)
102 Dalmatians (2000, Kevin Lima)
My Magic Dog (1998, John Putch)
One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961, C. Geronimi, H. Luske, W. Reithermann)
The Aristocats (1970, M. Kahl, J. Lounsbery, W. Reithermann, F. Thomas)
The Lady and the Tramp (1955, Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske)
Balto (1996, Simon Wells)
is followed by: All Dogs Go to Heaven 2 (1996, Larry Leker, Paul Sabella)