The Secret Life of Pets (2016)

Genre

Adventure | Animation | Comedy

Directors

Chris Renaud | Yarrow Cheney

Country

USA

Voice Cast

Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, Ellie Kemper, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress, Jenny Slate, Bobby Moynihan, Steve Coogan, Albert Brooks, Tara Strong, Chris Renaud, Michael Beattie, Sandra Echeverria, Jaime Camil

Storyline

The peaceful life of Max (Louis C.K.) is turned upside down when his owner (Ellie Kemper) brings home Duke (Eric Stonestreet), a stray whom Max instantly dislikes.

Opinion

I've been waiting for this film since april when I saw the trailer for the first time. It seemed fun and considering it came from Illumination Entertainment, the studio that created "Despicable Me", I decided to watch it. And I wasn't fully happy with it.

The main reason is because "The Secret Life of Pets" is a slapstick comedy, and while I love some good slapstick, it just doesn't have a good outcome here because it target kids at a very young age. Let's say those who are not able to follow good dialogue.

Another reason is the trailer. I know this thing happens a lot, but if you have seen it, you have seen the funniest parts of the film already. It basically gives away all the fun. Perhaps that's why I was disappointed, maybe I was expecting animals being wild when their owners weren't at home.

Which brings me to the plot. Still delivering several messages about friendship and adaptation, and somehow managing to be entertaining and engaging, it doesn't bring anything new to the table. If you have seen "Garfield: The Movie" it's like you have already seen this film. Owner brings home a new pet, the main pet is jealous and does everything to get rid of the new guy, they get on an adventure together and become besties.

There are a few positive notes though. First, the animation is amazing. Not Pixar amazing, but still amazing. The city is very detailed, and the animals are very beautiful. The music is also nice as well as some of the characters - I really liked Snowball, a white rabbit voiced by Kevin Hart whose expressions and attitudes made the character a lot more interesting.

6 comments :

  1. I do want to see this movie even though it didn't get a lot of love.i am thinking one has to be a major pet nut and since I have 5 cats and a dog (yes, I am nuts), I may like this film

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love animals, but I guess the reason I didn't like the film is that I was expecting more, all the fun was in the trailer.

      Delete
  2. Uhm, dopo i primi minuti, ho storto il naso: tutte le divertenti scene proposte nel trailer erano concentrate nell'apertura. Nonostante tutto, il film mi è piaciuto. Sì, ha i suoi difetti e la sua leggerezza ma si lascia guardare :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. A me invece non ha convinto più di tanto proprio perché tutte le scene divertenti erano nell'apertura (e nel trailer).

      Delete
  3. Thanks for the honest review. I was debating whether to check this movie out or not. :)

    ReplyDelete