Sheepdog

Iraq war vet Calvin Cole (Steven Grayhm) has relied on drugs and alcohol to treat brain trauma and PTSD, costing him his family. When the factory he works at in the old mill town of Montague, MA shuts down, his situation worsens and he attacks a man, Troy (A.J. Paratore), he believes is stalking him in a local Goodwill store. Troy, who was actually a high school teammate, recognizes his old friend's condition and drops the charges. The judge sentences him to state-mandated sixty day treatment at the local VA hospital, but it will be the arrival of the father-in-law he's never met, Whitney St. Germain (Vondie Curtis-Hall, "Blue Bayou"), a Vietnam War vet just released after a thirty year prison stint for murder, who will save the man's life in "Sheepdog."

Laura's Review: B

Writer/director/star Steven Grayhm took the title of his movie from a book by Lt. Col. Dave Grossman which explains that in combat there are sheep, wolves and the sheepdogs that run towards danger in order to protect others. He got his idea from a tow truck driver who told him about his struggles as a PTSD afflicted veteran. Grayhm interviewed veterans across the country before writing his script, and the resulting film is a clear-eyed look at how the U.S. prepares soldiers for battle but not for reintegrating into society when they come back home. The film is well acted and creates a real sense of community, although it appears to take shortcuts on Cal's road to recovery and one major event is somewhat muddled in execution.

Grayhm weaves together two different veteran's tales, slowing teasing out information about both, each having a climactic revelation in the film's third act. At Leavenworth, Whitney is asked if he feels he has been rehabilitated, then is released. He boards a bus, looking around like the alien he is after thirty years in incarceration. Back in Montague, Police officer O'Riordan (Dominic Fumusa, TV's 'Nurse Jackie') tells Cal he's lucky to be alive given the amount of drugs and alcohol found in his system after his arrest. 'Once a Shamrock, always a winner,' Cal tells his old coach in return, but O'Riordan will find he has to deliver some pretty tough love to get through to Cal.

Returning home, Cal sees an elderly black man on his front steps and urges him to 'get along,' but the man apologizes, saying he is looking for Alice St. Germain at that address. 'Are you Calvin?' he asks. Cal says Alice doesn't live there anymore, nor does he know where she is, and, as he is just out of the hospital, suggests maybe having a drink with the man at a later date. After one of many flashbacks showing Cal's family life with Alice (Lilli Cooper) training to be a nurse while he plays househusband to their two girls, Sydney (Nathalie Sepulveda) and Isabella (Rose Mallick), we will catch up with both men at the VA, Whitney looking for the daughter who refuses to see him and Cal to keep his appointment with Dr. Elecia Knox (Virginia Madsen, "Sideways," "Candyman").

Knox, a doctor in training in the present, has a lot of compassion for what Cal is going through, rooted in yet another veteran's tale, that of her son. A fourth veteran is introduced in the form of Cal's best friend, Darryl Sparks (Matt Dallas), whose wife has left with everything but a pet bird and, oddly, their tween daughter Taylor (Rhys Olivia Cote) who calls Cal Uncle. And when Whitney turns up outside Cal's house, angrily spouting off about his reception returning home from the war, Cal, learning the man has been sleeping in a bus depot, invites him to stay. A devastating event in the present will lead to revelations about harrowing events in the past, all of which will lead to both personal and interfamilial healing and what Knox refers to as 'post traumatic growth.'

There's a lot going on in Grayhm's script, perhaps a bit too much, but Cal's arc, formed by facing a lot of pain, is a hopeful one. Suicide plays a major role here, something the film is clearly attempting to combat, and the movie could actually help veterans who relate to it. The ensemble is strong, Curtis-Hall and Madsen both moving in pivotal scenes. The production is rooted in blue collar America, although financial struggles hardly come into play in a script that casts a wide net yet leaves us with questions. A third act bit of joy at a school talent show exhibits the bond between soldiers even when some are gone, while also appearing to borrow from Channing Tatum's brand of girlhood bonding, as does an earlier scene featuring Cal and Darryl in pink tutus.

"Sheepdog" is meat and potatoes filmmaking on a well worn subject that succeeds with its realistic portrait of small town community and every day heroes.

Robin's Review: B+

An elderly man, Whitney St. Germain (Vondie Curtis-Hall) is paroled from Leavenworth after serving 30 years for murder. Many miles away, a paper mill closes its doors and lets go all of its employees, including troubled Calvin Cole (Steven Grayhm). This unlikely pair will soon cross paths in “Sheepdog.”

Director, writer and co-star Steven Grayhm brings us two very different stories about the coming home veteran, from two eras – the Vietnam and Iraq wars. Whitney, a marine veteran of 25 years, was accused of murdering a white man in a southern town – it was five-to-one in the white guys’ favor. He was convicted of first-degree murder and received the life sentence and 30 long years later, a parole.

Calvin, who served several tours of duty and received some serious head injuries, is at loose ends now, but assures his concerned best friend, Darryl (Matt Dallas) that “he’s got a gig up north.” There is no job and Calvin gets into trouble when he gets angry at a clerk and beats the man badly. His medical records and violent history gets him a required 60-day outpatient treatment and evaluation.
These two very different men have a common link but neither knows it. Whitney, once back on the streets, heads to the last address he has for his long-estranged daughter, Alice (Lilli Cooper). He knocks at the door and is greeted by Calvin, who puts the older veteran off. Whitney spends the night huddling in a bus shelter to sleep.

Then, the common link comes out – Alice was Calvin’s wife and mother of their two children. Whitney goes to Alice’s workplace, the VA, but she refuses to see him, even threatening to call the police. Calvin extends him an invitation to stay and Whitney just has to follow the “house rules.” The two men, from very different backgrounds and service, both suffer from PTSD.

Calvin’s violent outbreak, that put him is mandatory rehabilitation, is assigned to Dr. Elecia Knox (Virginia Madsen), a newly-minted psychologist with Calvin her first patient. Their first meet does not go well and Calvin wants to quit – but he cannot. Slowly they develop an odd but sound relationship and Calvin begins to cope – but it is very tough for the vet.

This is, at its heart, is a story about healing, with Whitney trying to get a tiny bit of the family he never had with his daughter. For Calvin, though, it is a physically harder slog. In his tours of duty, he was subjected to repeated head injuries and Dr. Knox determined that the young man suffers from CTE – the reason for his violent outbreaks.

Steve Grayhm has obviously done his homework and his depiction of the ravages inflicted on the minds and bodies of our people sent off to war feels real. While Whitney’s and Calvin’s plights are separated by nearly a half century, their suffering is very real.
Both actors fully fill the shoes of their characters with Vondie Curtis-Hall giving a soulful performance of a man who has suffered 30-year of prison and, because of his “crime,” is stripped of his veteran status. The actor puts it on the line.

Multi-hat wearing Grayhm does well in each of his roles, directing his cast, and himself, with assurance. His writing is convincing as are the characters he creates – all giving first rate performances. And he gives a solid and convincing acting job as a veteran struggling with PTSD and life’s obstacles – and Calvin has many to overcome, including tragedy.

Grayhm makes the statement, firmly, that more needs to be done for our veterans, regardless of the war they had to fight. Thoughtfully, he makes the point that our veterans both need and deserve the attention and care to help with the problems that war inevitably wreaks upon its victims, especially the grunts on the ground.

Allen Media Group releases "Sheepdog" in theaters on 1/16/26. Click here for theaters.