This article discusses the ending of the Netflix film Rescued by Ruby and will contain spoilers.
Ready Steady Cut writer, Adam Lock, called Rescued by Ruby a “Feel-good film that takes the Disney formula and sprinkles some movie magic over a true-life underdog story.”
Having passed the tryouts, Dan O’Neil is placed on probation at the K-9 Unit. His provisional duties seem no different than from before and he finds these new jobs demeaning and dull. Yet Dan and Ruby are finally given their chance to shine when the call comes. They’re tasked with finding a missing body in a murder investigation. Dan and Ruby search the house and grounds, but to no avail. Ruby just sits on the porch barking. Dan inspects under the wooden boards, but can’t seem to find anything. He has to make a decision, choosing to call off the search, instead of going with the dog’s expert intuition.
Dan worries that his time at the K-9 Unit has come to an abrupt end and he starts to pull down all his photographs at home. Matt Zarella phones to say a body has been found, Ruby was right. She had sniffed it out, but Daniel had refused to delve any deeper at the time. The body was buried under three inches of cement. Matt states that Dan should have trusted his canine, he’s let her down. As if aware of this betrayal, Ruby runs away from home and goes missing herself.
To make matters worse, Dan receives another call, on top of everything now a boy has gone missing too. An embarrassed Dan admits to his boss that he’s lost his dog and Matt tells him to get looking. Dan goes searching for Ruby in the torrential downpour. Ruby eventually returns and they join the hunt. The outstanding pup finds the missing boy almost instantly. He’s fallen down a cliff and is unconscious on the ground. Dan resuscitates the child, but his radio isn’t working. In a triumphant moment, Ruby starts barking to gain the attention of the other police officers on the outskirts of the woods.
Netflix film Rescued by Ruby ending explained
The officers come to the rescue bringing medics to help. The boy is patched up and a relieved Dan heads home. Before leaving, there is just time for Matt to congratulate Dan and allow the boy’s mother to thank him personally. In an emotional twist, the mother ends up being Pat from the animal shelter. She cries and thanks both Daniel and the heroic Ruby. It’s a sweet ending that packs an emotional punch due to Pat’s heartfelt ties to the dog.
For a final twist, Matt reveals that the old man who Dan used to talk with, Seamus Brady (Riverdale’s Tom McBeath), was actually a scout helping out Matt all this time. Everyone had been rooting for Dan all along. In the end credits the filmmakers display photographs of the real life counterparts. There are photos of the actual Daniel O’Neil and Ruby, as well as Pat and Matt. One of these joyful pictures shows Ruby and Dan with a hot dog in hand, saying she still loves those treats. That warm and fuzzy feeling continues all the way into the end credits.
What did you think of the ending of the Netflix film Rescued by Ruby? Comment below.
