The film starts out with FBI and ATF agents on a pursuit to stop a truck carrying illegal guns as part of an illegal arms operation. The result is the death of the driver, which leads to a disagreement with FBI and ATF agents on involvement with the case.
Truck driver Jack Crews (Patrick Swayze) has just been released from jail for vehicular manslaughter, for accidentally hitting and killing a motorist and his passenger on the side of the road during a trip in which he experienced a Black Dog hallucination brought on by exhaustion. Along with his imprisonment, he also lost his Commercial driver's license. Following his release, he attempts to get back to a normal life, but this time works as a truck mechanic for a local repair shop in New Jersey, unable to drive himself. His manager, Frank Cutler (Graham Beckel), offers him a job driving a load of toilets from Atlanta to New Jersey for $10,000. Jack initially declines the offer, but when he discovers that his house will be repossessed unless he pays off his debt, he then changes his mind and takes the job.
He flies down to Atlanta to meet up with Red (Meat Loaf), who runs the trucking yard. Red initially gives Jack a brand-new truck to haul the load, but Jack chooses an older Peterbilt 379 so as not to draw too much attention. He is accompanied on the trip by Earl (Randy Travis) riding shotgun, and Sonny (Gabriel Casseus) and Wes (Brian Vincent) following in Sonny's Chevrolet Camaro for policy protection. As they make their way to New Jersey, the quartet experience several run-ins with Red and his crew as they attempt to hijack the load, in retaliation for the failed negotiations with Cutler about money. During the trip, Jack finds out that his load also contains illegal guns (over $3,000,000 worth, according to ATF), and that Wes has been informing Red of their whereabouts throughout the trip. Jack also discovers that Sonny is an FBI agent when he is shot and killed by Red during another hijack attempt, and that the FBI has been tracking their whereabouts as well. Jack then reveals to Earl and Wes that he lost his license due to seeing the Black Dog, a herald of destruction for truckers, and how he didn't see the motorist until it was too late.
Things worsen when Cutler takes Jack's wife Melanie and daughter Tracy hostage to ensure that Crews will complete the job and finish the entire trip. Despite the numerous attempts from Red to hijack the load, as well as Sonny's death, Jack manages to survive each attempt. When they make it to Maryland, Jack, aware of the entire plot, formulates a plan to turn over the guns to the FBI and to get his family back. Wes, at this point, has gone his separate way, while Earl decides to stay on until the end. Jack puts the FBI tracking device on the truck that Wes is leaving on and eventually the FBI pulls over the truck to realize it is the wrong one. However, Jack calls Agent Allen Ford (Charles Dutton), who is leading the case, on Wes' cell phone, telling him his plan to meet him at a loading dock in Jersey, where he will be meeting with Cutler to exchange the guns for his family.
When the meeting occurs, the FBI arrives and a shootout occurs with Cutler's men. Jack is able to catch Cutler before he can escape and then turns him over to the FBI. As a token of gratitude, the FBI gives Jack his commercial driver's license back, and also tells the Crewses that their house won't be foreclosed, in return for his assistance during the operation and they thank him for bringing Sonny's body back. He is also given the key to drive the truck one last time to the impound lot. Also, Jack thanks Earl, who was wounded in the shootout between the FBI and Cutler's men, for staying, and in return Earl tells Jack to take care of his dog, Tiny (a pit bull riding in the trailer as a guard), until he heals and everything is sorted out.
As the Crews’ leave the docks for the impound lot, they are intercepted by Red, who makes one last attempt at Jack's life, but ultimately their slamming into each other causes Red to lose control of his truck, which then flips over numerous times before getting hit by a train and exploding. After Jack checks on his family, he continues driving the truck to the impound lot.
Prior to the casting of Swayze, the film was initially intended as a vehicle for Kevin Sorbo[2]
In July 1997, it was announced that Sorbo would star in Black Dog for around $3 million with Kevin Hooks slated to direct and produce with the intention to shoot in September during Sorbo's hiatus from Hercules: The Legendary Journeys.[2] In September, Meat Loaf and Randy Travis were signed to star opposite Sorbo.[3]
By November of that year, it was reported that Patrick Swayze would star in Black Dog.[4]
Reception
Black Dog received negative reviews by critics, earning a 14% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 21 reviews. It has received cult status among film enthusiasts and RADwood car enthusiasts alike, as one of the last action road movies to use practical effects, signifying the end of an era.
Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale.[5]
