Walk Like a Man

Henry Shand travels to Alaska in search of gold and a fortune. He enters the harsh Klondike frontier hoping to strike it rich, braving the brutal winter. The expedition sets the stage for a family saga shaped by ambition and peril.

Reggie, resentful of chores, pushes his younger brother Bobo off the dogsled, leaving the toddler behind in the winter wilderness. The act reveals Reggie's cruelties and the brutal realities of the Klondike frontier. Bobo disappears into the snow, vanishing from the family’s sight.

About twenty years pass. Henry dies, leaving Reggie a vast inheritance of thirty million dollars. The windfall triggers a reckless spending spree that destabilizes the family and foreshadows coming conflicts.

Reggie squanders the fortune within a year, and his new wife Rhonda descends into alcoholism. With money gone and debts mounting, the couple moves back in with Reggie's mother, Margaret. The strain of wealth and loss resurfaces old wounds surrounding Bobo's disappearance.

Margaret has gone insane since Bobo's disappearance and Henry's death. She spends much of the fortune buying homes for stray cats. Her fixation illustrates the emotional toll on the family as the past remains unresolved.

A biologist named Penny arrives from Alaska, claiming she has found Bobo alive. She explains that Bobo was raised by timber wolves and now exhibits wolf-like behaviors. Her arrival rekindles hope that the long-lost child-dog might be returned.

Reggie tries to manipulate Bobo into signing over his inheritance to pay gambling debts. He tells Penny that Bobo can be used for wolf research, but she must first teach him to walk, talk, read, and write. The scheme centers on weaponizing Bobo's new persona for financial gain.

Penny trains Bobo, but the process is slow and chaotic. She gives him a shave and a haircut to present him as more human, while his wolfish habits stubbornly persist. The training yields comic mishaps and ongoing challenges as Bobo struggles to fit in.

Bobo goes out in public and wreaks havoc in a shopping mall. He enters dressing rooms, unwittingly tries on clothes, and leaves stores with items he doesn’t understand as a human shopper would. The spectacle underscores the tension between Bobo's animal and human traits.

As Bobo behaves more like a person, Penny begins to fall for him. Their bond grows despite Reggie's scheming and the looming pressure of the inheritance dispute. The evolving relationship complicates the legal fight and shifts the dynamics of the entire case.

With gambling debts piling up, Reggie pushes for speeding up Bobo's training. He grows more desperate as cash flow remains tight and the threat of losing everything returns. The pressure intensifies the conflict between Reggie, Penny, and Bobo.

Penny stands up for Bobo in court, exposing Reggie's manipulation. Bobo refuses to sign over his inheritance, and Reggie tries to mimic canine behavior to show that Bobo was acting like a wild animal. The judge dismisses the attempt, ruling in Bobo's favor.

Outside the courthouse, Penny and Bobo share a kiss, signaling their bond beyond the court's walls. Bobo then breaks away and chases a fire engine, a playful ending that captures his unique nature. The moment blends romance with a hint of the dog-wild spirit at the story's close.