Critics Find ‘Dog Man’ a Delightful Family Diversion

Dav Pilkey’s charming canine copper is ready to make his big-screen debut in DreamWorks Animation’s Dog Man. Directed by Peter Hastings (who also took on the ruff job of vocalizing Dog Man), the pic offers vibrant comics-inspired CG animation, off the wall action and plenty of comedy, delivered by voice stars Pete Davidson (Petey the Cat), Lil Rel Howery (Chief), Isla Fisher, Ricky Gervais and more.

Dog Man will be released in theaters by Universal Pictures this Friday, January 31 in 3,800 theaters, and is projected to lead the box office with a $20 million-plus weekend.

In the film, based on the popular kids’ books spun off from Pilkey’s Captain Underpants, a faithful police dog and his officer owner are injured on the job, and undergo a life-saving fusion surgery turning them into a hybrid hero. As Dog Man comes to grips with his new reality, crafty cat villain Petey attempts to clone himself, creating “Lil Petey,” who forges an unexpected bond with the crimefighter.

While not receiving the raves that accompanied DreamWorks’ previous feature, the awards season contender The Wild Robot, Dog Man is winning points in early reviews for its comedic charms, delightful animated dazzle and colorful visual. The film has not yet received a Rotten Tomatoes ranking. MetaCritic is charting Dog Man at 60 points from nine critics’ reviews so far.

Here’s what some reviewers are saying:

 

“While the humor is obviously geared toward young sensibilities, there are amusing throwaway gags for adults … The animation, too, is consistently delightful, densely crammed with visual gags and imaginative flourishes, like a gang of marauding buildings, that well merit the film being seen on the big screen.”

— Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter

 

“Jokes fly with the bouncy randomness of Dog Man’s favorite tennis ball, and there are so many that a fair number of them would land even if they weren’t pretty good. Mostly, it’s a visual pleasure: The computer renderings have just enough texture, and the movements enough jittery tactility, to give the film a handmade feel. The splashy color palette keeps the eye engaged … Even the running gag of giving buildings on-the-nose names (“Petey’s Secret Lab” “Abandoned Expendable Warehouse”), which should get old, doesn’t overstay its welcome: A movie with a genuine comic-book sensibility ought to have some love for onscreen text.”

— Ben Kenigsberg, The New York Times

“Catching each joke the film tells is a Herculean feat given the velocity at which they’re told, and the dots Hastings has to connect to get from ‘episodic structure’ to ‘climactic urban destruction’ are various enough that there’s no point keeping track of them. So it falls to those emotional arcs, and Petey most of all, to give Dog Man grounding, and the audience a breather.”

— Andy Crump, AV Club

 

 

“Animators give the aesthetics an adorably appealing gloss. There’s a terrific tactile look to Dog Man’s velvet-soft face and Petey’s familial crayon-striped furry coat. They also incorporate hand-drawn elements when letters appear on-screen. Explosions emit curlicue swirls in addition to CGI smoke. Sorrowful scenes — like the one where a dejected Dog Man walks home from work during a pink sunset, or when Petey and his progeny walk in the moonlight realizing their harsh reality — utilize a gorgeous color scale to intone the emotional underpinnings. Plus, they beautifully augment Davidson’s vocal performance, gifting him with expressiveness in his facial features, especially in the third act when his character’s redemptive virtues are shaded in.”

— Courtney Howard, Variety

 

“The guerilla feel of the books has given way to a blockbuster, explosion-filled, deep message film about fatherhood, optimism and love. What once was created in a school hallway because its creator was disruptive in class is now enjoying a marketing campaign that involves digital billboards, costume character tours and changing the color of the Empire State Building’s lights. Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’ is on the soundtrack. It’s subversive no more.”

— Mark Kennedy, Associated Press