THE STORY – When a police officer and his faithful police dog get injured in the line of duty, a harebrained but life-saving surgery fuses the two of them together — and Dog Man is born. As Dog Man learns to embrace his new identity, he must stop feline supervillain Petey the Cat from cloning himself and going on a crime spree.
THE CAST – Pete Davidson, Lil Rel Howery, Isla Fisher, Poppy Liu, Stephen Root, Billy Boyd & Ricky Gervais
THE TEAM – Peter Hastings (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 89 Minutes
As a kid in the late ‘90s, “Captain Underpants” captured my imagination, for better or worse, filling my brain with dreams of crafting my own comics and loads of literal potty humor. Author Dav Pilkey’s books have remained popular with young readers for decades, spinning off from the “Captain Underpants” series and into a new creation, “Dog Man.” Now, I’ve moved from potty humor-infused child to parent, and have thoroughly enjoyed reading Pilkey’s latest work with my kids, and now sharing this new movie with them as well. While those disconnected from the source material likely won’t be won over by this film, “Dog Man” captures the silliness of the books quite well, injecting a new level of sweetness along the way, making for a cute, if a bit forgettable, family film.
For those unfamiliar, “Dog Man” was spun off from “Captain Underpants,” written as if the two children at the center of that series, Harold and George, wrote and drew the “Dog Man” series of books. Since they’re stories meant to be told by children, they’re charmingly simplistic. While the “Dog Man” movie sadly loses that meta-narrative, writer-director Peter Hastings maintains the straightforward storytelling. A police officer and his beloved canine were blown up on the job. The hospital decides, naturally, to sew the dog’s head onto the cop’s body, creating Dog Man (with vocal effects from Hastings). He fights crime, especially those committed by a dastardly cat named Petey (voiced by Pete Davidson), while always getting under the skin of the police chief, named, of course, Chief (Lil Rel Howery). That’s really all there is to the plot. The film doesn’t attempt to mess with the winning formula of the books, which leads to mixed results.
On the one hand, keeping the story simple to avoid confusing the young audience makes a lot of sense. Even so, the first act of this film really drags. As it sets up the story of how Dog Man came to be and how Petey becomes his nemesis, it orients audiences more than helps them invest in any emotions of the story. Dog Man and Petey go back and forth for much of the first act, but it just gets old quickly. Thankfully, the movie pivots in the second half, bringing something a bit more unexpected.
While the storytelling may be basic, the humor and animation style pair perfectly, hooking viewers in more than the plot can. Though “Dog Man” doesn’t have any references to Harold and George drawing these stories, it maintains a somewhat handcrafted comic feel. The character designs are imperfect, with pieces all askew, just as an elementary kid might draw them. The blocky CGI animation is accentuated with hand-drawn elements, occasionally with words popping up into the scene, like a comic book. It’s an endearing style that helps the goofiness of the story shine. “Dog Man” leans into the nonsense, like having a bomb placed on a building with a giant sign that reads “Abandoned Expendable Warehouse” or characters crashing into guys carrying a “Box of Bees” that spills cutouts of the letter B rather than stinging insects. These simple visual gags, big and small, work to create an endearing energy throughout the movie.
Though the film struggles to maintain story momentum early on, the addition of Li’l Petey (Lucas Hopkins), a cute child clone of the evil villain Petey, injects a burst of heartwarming charm. Prior to his introduction, the film had just about squeezed all the juice it could out of the straightforward superhero tale. But with Li’l Petey in the mix, it becomes a charming story of protecting this innocent little feline. Both Dog Man and adult Petey can’t help but love this little guy, and neither will viewers, thanks to the charming animation and Hopkins’ adorable voice performance. As another nefarious villain threatens the city, Li’l Petey makes Dog Man and Petey rethink their priorities, leading to a very lovely third act.
Like the Pilkey series, “Dog Man” is very clearly aimed at younger viewers. Families of elementary-aged kids will have a phenomenal time at the movies. Though there’s little to elevate this one into the staple rotation of family movie nights, it’s sure to make fans of the series happy. No, but really, where were George and Harold?
