into a film about humans who own animals. "As everyone knows, that should be the other way around." The Canberra Times''' reviewer Dougal McDonald wrote that while Murray Ball had devised enough gags and situations to sustain 72 minutes of animated film in the constrictions of a coherent plot line, he had "kept the ingredients but not the flavour". He said the result is "Saturday matinee, school holidays stuff, no matter how devoted you may be to Ball on the printed page". He also noted the absence of a few of the comic strip's characters: Prince Charles the corgi, Cooch's cousin Kathy and Cecil the ram. When Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale screened in Los Angeles, California, in 1987, film critic Charles Solomon gave it two and a half stars out of four and the following review: The film received a limited re-release in New Zealand cinemas in 2011, at which time co-producer John Barnett ruled out the possibility of a sequel, saying the time had passed. Home mediaFootrot Flats: The Dog's Tale was released on VHS. It was later released on DVD on 9 April 2004 for its 18th anniversary. It was re-released on DVD and for the first time on Blu-ray on 12 January 2011. It is also available for purchase and streaming on Amazon. A copyright warning at the end of the film states: Anyone caught pirating this picture will be eaten by The Murphys' Hellhounds. Accolades Tie-ins A tie-in book, Magpie Productions Presents Footrot Flats - The Dog's Tail Tale by Murray Ball and Tom Scott, and featuring animation stills from the movie, was released in 1986. A more detailed book, Footrot Flats: The Dog's Tale, The Making of the Movie'' by Lesley Stevens, was published by Inprint in 1986. Due to the success of the film, Leisureland, a theme park in Te Atatū, West Auckland, New Zealand, was rebranded as the Footrot Flats Fun Park. See also List of animated feature films of 1986 References External links Footrot Flats at NZ On Screen 1986 films 1986 animated films 1980s New Zealand films New Zealand comedy films New Zealand animated films Animated comedy films Films about farmers Films set on farms Films set in New Zealand Animated films based on comics Films based on comic strips 1980s English-language films Films about dogs