Underdog

When I first became a father about 5.5 years ago, I was prepared for many of the sacrifices I'd have to make. I knew I'd have to change diapers and take them to swimming lessons and attend many a freezing Santa Claus parade, but I wasn't ready for the kind of sacrifice I made last night. This, in my humble opinion, is cruel and unusual punishment.

Underdog is bad. It's not quite Karate Dog bad, but it makes The Shaggy Dog feel like Pulp Fiction. If Underdog were a television show, I'd recommend flipping on by. Not even the presence of Puddy and the voice of Banky Edwards can save it. Bow. Wow.

It was also just about the best 80 minutes I've ever enjoyed. James was seated to the right of me and Michelle to the left, and I spent more time watching their reaction to this talking, flying mutt than watching the screen. At 5 and 3 years old, they were the target audience, and this movie nailed the target. There's a scene where Underdog belches loudly in another dogs face and Michelle thought it was the funniest scene ever captured on film. When Underdog was flying into outer space, James was literally at the edge of his seat, mesmerized. The kids absolutely loved Underdog, and that's why I was there. That's what last night was all about.

Unless you're accompanying someone under the age of ten, you have no business wasting a second of your life watching this brutal film. But if you are looking to kill 80 minutes with your four year old, I won't judge. I had a blast.

Occasionally, a film's trailer gives viewers a realistic preview. Such was the case with "Underdog". Here is a film with humor offered without the condescension and knowing winks delivered by Dreamworks Animation and its ilk. The story is a typical zap-the-hero setup and does not pretend to be otherwise.

The actors (human and animal alike) deliver professional performances. Peter Dinklage is delicious as the requisite mad scientist. James Belushi is surprisingly effective and believable as the dad. Unfortunately, Patrick Warburton has descended from acceptably quirky into shtick. Newcomer Alex Neuberger (in his second feature) gives his part a nice emotional balance and doesn't overplay his sidekick work.

The animal animation is nicely handled and devoid of gimmickry. This part of the movie industry deserves praise for continued development and polish.

Summers have blockbusters created by and viewed by blocks; Underdog reminds audiences that a simple, fun flick can be far more entertaining.

They did it again: ripped off an old show's title, then destroyed the nostalgia with boring "re-imagined" stuff. The '60's cartoon was one of the funniest of its time, a good-natured satire of super hero comic books. The character was drawn as 1/2 way between animal and human, the way Mickey Mouse is. Here they use a real beagle; that's about the same as making a Mickey Mouse watch with a real rat.

Most of the clever schtick that made the original show funny is missing from this film. Instead, we get a clumsy ex-police dog who's even dumber than Cad. And some pet owners who add nothing to the story. Cheesy effects (the dog-talking animation is embarrassing). Poor scripting. A stereotyped dwarf playing Simon Bar Sinister. The gravelly noise box guy they hired to voice Underdog is painful. You'd think they'd at least gotten a voice impressionist to approximate Wally Cox's humorously distinctive voice for Underdog. But no. There are, at least, a few affectionate references to the source material (such as the rhyming lines), which lift it to a 4.

Only small children that love dogs may enjoy this. Everybody else should get a DVD of the original cartoon series. Watch this only in desperation.

This movie was fun to watch, even for us adults. The humor was spot on, and the acting was what you'd expect. Jason Lee was great as Underdog's voice. Get this movie when it comes out on DVD. It's worth your while for a few chuckles with the kids. Even though it's aimed at kids, both my wife and I liked it, and honestly, I usually don't like kid's movies. I think they are usually way to low on the intelligence and believability scale. This one, actually had a decent story that didn't stray into stupidity and utter ridiculousness that most kid's movies do. Once again, go see this movie, or get the DVD when it comes out, you can see it again and again.

I was shocked to see this movie has got such a low rating!I mean,why in the world would people give a movie like this 4.5 stars!Have they lost their sense of humor? Or the childhood that once resided inside their heart just died somehow? I'm giving this one a 10 star rating..not even thinking whether the cgi effects,or the scripts and whatever were weak or not.I'm just praising this because I found it very entertaining,forget everything else.Just try to watch this as you used to watch TV in your childhood days.If you still like "tom & jerry",you should also like this.And even if you don't like it,your kids are guaranteed to love it seriously.So you should give this at least a respectable rating since it is loved by your kids!(Hang your opinion!)