The Snapshot: A simplistic cartoon about a cat and dog chase through the city delivers a cute, likeable story and big laughs.
Dog Man
7 out of 10
G, 1hr 29mins. Animated Family Comedy.
Written and Directed by Peter Hastings.
Starring Peter Hastings, Pete Davidson, Lucas Hopkins Calderon, Isla Fisher, Lil Rel Howery and Ricky Gervais.
Now Playing at Film.Ca Cinemas, Cineplex Winston Churchill & VIP and Cineplex Oakville & VIP.
For a half dog half policeman, Dog Man is one pretty smart pup. But it might make sense you have to be if you’re going to be the star cop in a big city terrorized by an evil tabby cat.
Most of what the new animated family comedy Dog Man has to offer is exactly what’s on the surface level. The jokes are clean, simple and straightforward. The colours are bright, and the voice cast is energetic. And the story is about (you guessed it!) a dog who’s a police officer.
The greatest success from Dreamworks’ simple cartoon isn’t its content or themes - it’s the minimalism in its execution and production value. Solid animation and a clear story arc reveal the admirable moral message: doing the right thing only needs a little encouragement.
Kids will find the plot easy to follow and understand the subtext of, and the gags are equally wholesome and cute to amuse the adults accompanying them. To his credit, the character of Dog Man (voiced by director and writer Peter Hastings) is an easily likeable and funny hero - even if you’re a cat person.
What’s most surprising, however, is that the meat of the story actually revolves around the redemption arc of the villainous Petey the Cat (Pete Davidson, of SNL fame). His relationship with dog man - and the fact he can talk instead of just bark - gives Petey more depth to his character that can be appreciated.
If the designs look a bit odd and half-hazard, you likely don’t know the film is actually based on the popular children’s graphic novel series Dog Man by Dav Pilkey, best known for writing Captain Underpants (co-incidentally also adapted by Dreamworks Animation back in 2017).
Appreciating the humour of Dog Man to its full potential, however, requires an understanding that the “Dog Man” stories are meant to be the comic book creation of fourth grade children George and Harold in the Captain Underpants universe.
While that explains the art style and dialogue writing (and several running gags, like intentionally misspelling common words in signs everywhere), the film never addresses the reasons behind those creative choices - meaning if you’ve never heard of Captain Underpants or Dog Man, you’ll likely be very confused.
Among the humourous voice cast, a special mention must go to Lucas Hopkins Calderon as Lil’ Petey the cat. This young man’s earnest, optimism and comic timing make him the easy standout character, consistently cute and earning big laughs.
If you’re looking for easy, all-ages winter laughs, Dog Man has solved the case and saved the day. What the film lacks in profundity it more than up for in makes for with showmanship and hope.
Author's note: Movie buffs might be curious to wonder: "Didn't Universal Pictures release another movie called Wolf Man just two weeks ago? And they're next movie is the (somehow unrelated) Dog Man?!
Well, not only are you right in finding this strange coincidence - but please also know that one is an adorable cartoon for children, and one is a grisly, violent horror movie. So double check your tickets before going into the cinema this weekend! Happy movie-going!
