Ever wonder what your pet will do when you leave them at home? In this latest animated film from Illumination Entertainment, the answer to that question turns out to be wilder than our imagination. Could they be socializing in English, acting as human as human beings, acting like kung fu masters or engaging in car chases and large underground conspiracies to cause mass furor at the Brooklyn Bridge?
Many called The Secret Life of Pets as "Toy Story with pets". Toys replaced with pets. The narrative base and characterization are similar, which tells the story of two rivals as well as various colorful characters involved in adventure in a world that is outside their comfort zone with the owner. This film is not as seorinal, as deep or as touchable as Pixar's product, but its humor is hard to deny. Emotional tohokan is compensated by energetic jokes. The visuals are not inventive, but the color palette and texture are nice to see.
Illumination is the studio responsible for bringing the Minions - a silly funny yellow beast who became a sidekick in the Despicable Me film - into the main spotlight in a solo movie. They entertain in small doses but exasperating when excessive. In The Secret Life of Pets, her cute characters remain in an adorable fashion throughout the movie and they are turned on with a solid voiceover.
Our narrator is Max (Louis C.K.), a tiny terrier dog whose biggest daily plan is to wait for the master, Katie (Ellie Kemper) to come home and play with her. To pass the time, Max occasionally mingles with his fellow pet neighbors: Gidget (Jenny Slate), a small Pomerian dog who seems to have feelings for Max; Mel (Bobby Moynihan), a less intelligent hyperactive bulldog; Chloe (Lake Bell) a lazy fat cat; as well as some other animals.
Max's comfortable and happy life is disrupted because Katie suddenly brings home a big dog named Duke (Eric Stonestreet). Max does not want to be combined while Duke wants to take his place in his new home. This rivalry leads them stray on the streets of New York. But the greatest enemy is not the animal catcher, but a rebel gang led by cute furry bunny rabbit, Snowball (Kevin Hart). It consists of abandoned pets that are quite spooky like snakes, monkeys, crocodiles to tattooed pigs, their ambition is to take over the upper world from humans.
While Max and Duke find their way home, Gidget gathers the crew to rescue them, including a hawk named Tiberius (Albert Brooks) who must withstand his predatory appetite and Pops (Dana Carvey), an aging dog that moves hard. There are some action scenes aimed at adding excitement, but The Secret Life of Pets is more interesting when presenting a light comedy that turns out to be more hilarious than I expected. The best moments are some that have been shown in the trailer, that is when the pet is crazy when their employer does not exist. For example poodle dogs who like to hear metal songs or dachshund dogs that relax with a cake mixer. There are also sight gags about stereotypes like dogs that are more innocent (than apathetic cats) as well as cats who like to pursue lasers.
Although the design of the character is good and striking, their personality is not so memorable, as the film. Even so, director Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney have a very precise voice commodity. This role seems to be really tailored to their characteristics. Louis C.K., Stonestreet and Slate are easy-to-use protagonists. There is not yet a more appropriate and very hilarious container for Hart's explosive and vulgar slot except in the Snowball character. Her contrasting physical appearance gives her own cuteness.
The movie is entertaining for me and seeing the response of the little audience, I'm sure it will also be entertaining for the kids. There may be some parts that are quite dark and horrible especially the scene in the culvert, but I do not think it would be a problem given the level of tolerance of today's children who are already higher. There are also some references that are likely to be missed ("sausage party" scenes, for example), but they will be distracted by stories that move fast enough, bright images and light plots containing lots of jokes but still fun to watch.
The Secret Life of Pets is a forgettable animation and does not explore the potential of its deeper premise. As with pets, "quality time" is often just watching them act funny and adorable. And we know this has nothing to do but to entertain.