 |
|
|
|
| | | |
| MatchFlick Member Reviews |
All Movie Info
Starring:
Alex Neuberger, Jason Lee, Amy Adams, James Belushi, Taylor Momsen, Patrick Warburton, Peter Dinklage, John Slattery, Ezra Buzzington, Armen Garo, Jerry Quinn, Diz White, Whitney Avalon, Jason Anthony, Domenic Fuggetta, Bruce-Robert Serafin, Kal Thompson, Michael Tyler Henry, Samantha Bee, Rebekah Aramini, Susie Castillo, Jillian Swanson, Rebekah Aramini, Stephanie Stokes
Directed By:
Frederik Du Chau
Written By:
Adam Rifkin, Joe Piscatella
|
|
|
| |
Underdog (2007)
 email this review to a friend
Movie Review by Jarrod
August 5th, 2007
|  |
Does anyone remember the 'Underdog' cartoon? Not I, so I walked into this movie completely unfamiliar with the source material. Not to say it really matters.
You have here something that is superbly entertaining to children, and not incredibly interesting to adults, though I was surprised to find how sweet and downright adorable it was, not to mention occasionally funny and clever. Shoeshine (voiced by Jason Lee) is a beagle, who works for the police in the fictional metropolis of Capitol City. One day, he is abducted and taken to the lab of the crazy Dr. Barsinister (Dinklage), who wants to conduct experiments on him. Shoeshine escapes, but not before taking a dip in some chemicals, which grant him extraordinary powers. He is found on the streets by Dan Unger (Belushi), a widower, who takes him home to his son, Jack (Neuberger).
Jack and Dan have a strained relationship, so the boy bonds with Shoeshine, who eventually transforms into a superhero, complete with cape, who flies around the city helping those in danger, and thwarting the devious machinations of Barsinister and his henchman Cad (Warburton). There is also a romance between Shoeshine and Polly Purebred (voiced by Amy Adams), a c*cker spaniel, and they share a moment inspired by Disney's Lady and the Tramp. Lee and Adams do solid voice work, and they have a lot of chemistry. They give their canine characters wit and personality, and the dogs themselves never look fake or unconvincing, and their mouth movements are closely synchronized with the actors' voices.
Dinklage is terrific, and hams its up as the mad scientist, which is very different from his previous roles, in The Station Agent, or even Joely Richardson's lover in Nip/Tuck. There is also a tendency to play around with the conventions of the superhero genre, but 'Underdog' is wrought with cliches itself, and moves along predictably, with little of the stylish, special-effects ridden action most superhero films possess. Of course, this is aimed at kids, and one might have to forego such content to make it appealing or acceptable for them.
email this review to a friend
Comment on this Review:
Sorry, you must be a member to add comments to reviews.
Join or Login. |
 Subscribe to MatchFlick Movie Reviews through RSS
|
