Secret Life of Pets (2016) [Blu-ray]
Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

Comedy superstars Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, and Kevin Hart make their animated feature-film debut that finally answers the question: what do your pets do when you're not home? When their owners leave for the day, pets from the building gossip with their friends, satisfy their sweet tooths, and throw outrageous parties. But when a pampered terrier (C.K.) and his unruly new "roommate" from the pound (Stonestreet) get lost in the urban jungle of New York City, they must put aside their differences to survive the epic journey back home.

Storyline: In a Manhattan apartment building, Max's life as a favorite pet is turned upside-down, when his owner brings home sloppy mongrel Duke. They must put their quarrels aside when they learn that adorable white bunny Snowball is building an army of lost pets determined to wreak revenge. Written by Supermikey71

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, November 26, 2016 In 2016, it's not at all hard to determine what really does happen behind closed doors when the humans are gone and the pets are left to fend for themselves. A camera or two can stream a live image to a device, giving humans an eye into the true "secret life of pets" which, of course, isn't anything remotely close to what the movie depicts. But watching some animals lay around the house, maybe get up for a bite of food or a splash of water wouldn't make for an interesting movie. Instead, Illumination Entertainment's new film takes viewers on a rollicking adventure of big-city peril and explores the bond between man and animal in The Secret Life of Pets, a movie that's animated in more ways than one but takes audiences on a fun ride through the creative team's interpretation of what life in the big city must be like for pets left alone when their masters go out to provide for their needs. Hint: it's not a restful, lazy day on the couch.

Max (voiced by Louis C.K.) is a dog that loves his life. He was plucked from nothing and dropped into his master Katie's (voiced by Ellie Kemper) arms. It's been the perfect relationship, full of love and happiness. The only sore spot comes when Katie leaves Max alone for long stretches of the day. He doesn't know why she leaves him behind, but if nothing else it gives him the opportunity to chat with some of the other pets that live nearby. One day, Katie returns home but Max's exuberance quickly turns to disgust. She's brought home another dog that goes by the name of "Duke" (voiced by Eric Stonestreet). He's much larger than Max, but that doesn't stop Max from laying claim to the house and doing his best to rule over his new unwanted companion. One day, Duke tries to ditch Max while the two are out for a stroll. Things spiral downhill and they're caught by animal control but are rescued by a malicious rabbit named Snowball (voiced by Kevin Hart) who, along with his his followers, is seeking revenge on the humans who mistreated them. Max and Duke distance themselves from Snowball and find themselves on the run, desperate to get back home and live the good life, together.

The movie is...alright. Vibes of Toy Story course through it, and the inescapable comparison means the movie seems always destined to live in a better picture's shadow. Still, it stands on its own four legs well enough, finding both the everyday humor in "the secret life of pets" as well as plenty from all of the antics that follow in their adventure. Yet at its core this is very standard stuff, creative no further than some of the story specifics. The characters lack much in the way of distinct personalities, some playing on real animal stereotypes and others more or less copied and pasted from similar "talking animal" animated movies. The sheer volume of characters means a little bit of unoriginality is bound to seep through, but even the primaries -- excluding the evil bunny Snowball -- seem only like garden-variety characters within the broader animation landscape. Snowball's evil ways -- his anti-human crusade and quest to kill Max and Duke -- put the movie in a darker place than most of its contemporaries. The film does a fair job of offsetting that with plenty of cuddly characters and more hit than miss humor, but it's definitely a film that's probably only a single level above most other kid-friendly talking animal fare like Rio or Madagascar.

Though its antics are a little unimaginative, its story a touch too dark, and its characters by-and-large generic, The Secret Life of Pets does get by with some high energy humor, great animation, and fantastic voice work. The film's jokes run the gamut of animal stereotype and cliché but also explore some externalities in the way humans deal with pets and life in the city. Not all of them hit, but the LPM (Laugh-Per-Minute) ratio is high enough to keep a smile on the face beyond those few moments of plot darkness, which even manage to lighten the mood when, for example, the red eyes on security snakes turn green upon receiving the proper password. The digital workmanship on the movie is terrific, boasting wonderfully imaginative character construction that's largely authentic to core animal qualities but exaggerated for effect just enough to give them a visual personality as well as accentuate core character traits. Voice work is fantastic; every main cast member falls into role with a perfectly pitched cadence that fits the animal's personalities, the situation, and the movie's larger tone very well. Technically, they don't get much better than this.

The Secret Life of Pets delivers decent enough entertainment but, rather than real creative "secret" stuff it simply takes the easy road out and puts the animals in a basic adventure film. It's very well animated and voiced, but it's a fairly monotonous film otherwise, even if many of the jokes hit. Universal's Blu-ray release delivers top-flight video and audio. Supplements include three mini-movies and a bunch of short, fluffy features. Worth a look.

[CSW] -2.2- Not what I was expecting from the trailer! I thought this was going to be a cute, funny movie about the things that pets do to pass the time while waiting for their owners to get home. I did like the psycho bunny who wanted to kill all humans, but even that was more like adult humor and although I didn't see it with my older (13-14 year old) grandchildren, I am pretty sure that they would gave gotten bored part way through. So in short I thought this movie was going to have a better premise. It looked good in the previews but it was a bit disappointing. Not funny enough, not touching enough, not caring enough, all of the emotions did not jell into something that would make me really care what happened to the characters. Chaos does not make for a secret life, at least not in my book.
[V5.0-A4.5] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box


º º