I borrowed this off a friend recently, slightly against my will (the wife wanted to see it), but was, thankfully, pleasantly surprised. I have a natural antipathy to films which star animals voiced by humans... but in this case, with Danny DeVito as Rocks (a bit of a scruffy dog, to say the least) and Diane Keaton as Daphne (an altogether more refined creature), it seemed unlikely to descend into nauseating, like certain other films like Babe (which I managed to watch for a whole two minutes before being unable to take any more!).

It also had the added bonus of staring John Travolta and Kirstie Alley. Haven't seen much of the latter recently, but they are two fine actors. Well, she's an actress, but I understand that it's PC to call women actors these days.

So she's an actress. Down with PC.

The storyline is about a family (Travolta, Alley, and their two children) and changing circumstances. Like him getting a new job and her loosing hers. And his boss trying to seduce him. And the little boy finding out that there is no Santa Claus. And, of course, the dogs.

The acting is good, with the kids doing fine and Travolta particularly having fun, and even getting to do a litte dancing. The voice-acting of the dogs is well performed, and the dogs obviously exceptionally well trained (or the camera crew just very, very lucky... nah...) The plot unfolds nicely without any real surprises, with plenty of laughs. Samantha, Travolta's boss who is trying to lure him away from his wife, is played well by Lysette Anthony, who does a particularly fine job of making the viewer want something horrible to happen to her. It does, eventually, in a most suitable and satisfactory way, but I'll leave that as a surprise.

It's a good family film although not for younger children due to the rather candid nature of one or two scenes, which is why it got a 12 rating in the first place, I guess. There's nothing wildly offensive in it though, and children will enjoy it as well as adults.

The film does deal with some important subjects, but in a rather trite, one-dimensional, and basically obvious way (at least to an adult). However, since it's a comedy and not a social documentary I think it can be forgiven that.

The DVD just plunges you straight into the film with no fuss and no extras, which is fine by me.

Overall, this is a good film and much better than I expected. It's not an all-time classic and it doesn't really deserve a 5-star rating, though. Which is why I haven't given it one. It's funny, it's occasionally moving, and basically good fun. Which is a good deal more than many films I've seen.


See also my Top Ten Children's Movies

Recommended:
Yes

Viewing Format: DVD
Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older