A Disney film usually works when it doesn’t punch above its weight. Eight Below doesn’t, and is hence quite hunky-dory for light family entertainment. It has to be cutesy of course, so we have a set of furry canines that get lost in subzero wilderness for six months, plus other such inanities, but it manages to cram in enough action, adventure, laughs, tears, and even a happy ending, to be positively uplifting.
Don’t read too much into reviews that knock the pacing of the film. I think it moved pretty well. The story is loosely based on the experiences of an actual Japanese exploration team rescued by sled dogs in Antarctica (the lead review on this site may be incorrect in its misinformation about some book from 1902), which means we are spared from dogs bursting into chitchat or animal thoughts lobbed into cruddy voice-overs. Would have been even better if the human banter could have been skipped in favor of more of the dogs.
All in all, decent family entertainment if you set your expectations right.