Marmaduke

In terms of plotting, Marmaduke has about as much plot as Sex and the City 2, which is to say it has virtually none. Considering that this is a movie for kids and not an adult comedy, I didn't mind so much. I should add that this is a movie not just for kids, but really little kids. The seven and under crowd should love it. Adults will most likely be checking their watches, but at least it's not torturous to sit through.

Marmaduke is, of course, based on the long-running comic strip. I don't recall the last time the character has been relevant in modern pop culture, but considering the success the Fox studio had with the Garfield and Alvin and the Chipmunk films, it's not surprising they're giving the Great Dane a shot. In the comics, the dog itself doesn't talk, but he sure does talk up a storm in the movie. With Owen Wilson providing the voice, Marmaduke narrates the film, frequently breaks the fourth wall to talk to the audience, talks to the human family who owns him (although they can't understand him), talks to other dogs, and even to a cat who lives with him named Carlos (voiced by George Lopez). We get a lot of his philosophy on what it means to be an outcast. He's a big dog, so he doesn't really fit in anywhere. The movie tries to make a lot of parallels between being an awkward teenager in high school, and being an awkward dog, which is kind of a cute idea. Too bad the movie doesn't do much with it.

Since we see all the animals talk in this movie, now's about as good a time as any to mention the special effects used to match the mouths of the animals with the actors doing the voices. It looks very weird and kind of off putting at times. It just doesn't look natural to see an animal's mouth flopping around with the aid of computer graphics. I still stand by my notion that the best way to present talking animals is by letting us hear their thoughts through voice over. Oh, I'm not forgetting the Babe movies, which successfully created the illusion that an entire barnyard had things to say. But more often than not, the effect of a talking animal looks mechanical and kind of creepy. Such is the case here. And since 90% of the film's on screen cast walks on four legs, it becomes distracting.

I realize I haven't said anything about what the movie is about. Not much to say. Marmaduke and Carlos the cat move with their human family, the Winslows, from Kansas to California. The father of the family, Phil (Lee Pace) takes a job at an organic dog food company, where his new boss (William H. Macy, cashing an easy paycheck) spends all day at a dog park instead of an office. As for Marmaduke, he learns that the pedigree dogs rule the dog park, and he's forced to hang out with the mutts, who are led by a nice dog named Mazie (voice by Emma Stone). Mazie has feelings for Marmaduke, but he only wants to be popular, and has eyes on the top female pedigree dog, Jezebel (voice by Stacy Ferguson). He doesn't seem to care that Jezebel is currently dating the leader of the pedigrees and all-around-bully, Bosco (voice by Kiefer Sutherland).

There's a lot of talk about being true to yourself, and appreciating your real friends. It's a nice lesson for kids to learn, sure, but it's been used so often. Any kid who watches movies or videos has probably heard it a dozen times by now themselves. There's also a lot of subplots that seem to have been thrown in by the screenwriters at random. Phil becomes so occupied with his new job that he doesn't have any time for his family. Teenage Winslow daughter Barbara (Caroline Sunshine) gets a crush on a nice surfer boy. Marmaduke wins a surfing competition for dogs. Marmaduke runs away from home after his family gets angry at him for trashing the house. Marmaduke and Mazie fall into a giant sink hole that suddenly appears in the middle of the street they're standing on, are almost swept away by raging sewer waters, and Phil has to dive in to save them. You get the idea.

The only people who should be reading this review are those who are wondering if it's okay to take their young children to it. The answer to that is yes. They'll have a great time, and you'll probably enjoy the cool air conditioned theater. Anyone not in this position has no reason to be considering Marmaduke. As kid's entertainment, I didn't mind. But I'm secretly hoping I won't have to sit through Marmaduke 2 next year.

See the movie times in your area or buy the DVD at Amazon.com!

0 comments