A few days late but here we go :)

The next entry in this review segment I have going is the new-ish Disney movie A Secret Life of Pets. I went into this movie with the expectation that it was going to be a punny, slap-stick sort of one-off comedy and that is exactly what I got.

The story centers around Max (played by Louis C.K), a dog who, at the start of the film, has the ideal life surrounded by other domestic animals who live in his apartment complex. From there, things begin to fall apart when his owner adopts what I can only describe as the canine version of the abominable snowman. Through a series of misadventures, Max gets lost in the sewers of New York City and his animal companions need to discover what happened.
To me, it seems a very classic story narrative. That of :
“The Intro,” “Primary Conflict,” “Larger Conflict,” “Enemies become friends” then “The Resolution.”
I guess what I just described is probably one of the most used character narratives, that of the Hero’s Journey. A concept famously popularized by George Lucas but dates back to ancient Greece. From humble beginnings, the hero encounters a conflict which he reacts to and in doing so sparks a greater conflict. Then the stakes get raised, in the case of A Secret Life of Pets that means getting chased through New York by an adorable, psychotic, anti-human bunny. From there the protagonists (in this case Max and Duke) find common ground, join forces and in doing so things resolve themselves happily.

To be honest I feel that in some ways this movie was trying to do too much. Every second of screen time was used as a punch line but in doing so none of the jokes had time to fully sink in. Having pauses would, I think have given the audience a chance to absorb more of the humor.
Would it have been better with some of the content edited out? I’m not sure, regardless it was a fun, enjoyable, one-off experience.
Thinking about it this (I hope) is one of the few Disney movies where they couldn’t possibly create a sequel. I mean, it is Disney and they can wring money out of any franchise but if a sequel was released it would really only be more of the same. With a movie like this, there is no place to innovate. I think that’s because it appealed to a very surface level form of comedy, relying mostly on stereotypes and slapstick. Which isn’t to say it was bad but as I’ve pointed out the storyline was stuck together with overused narratives and tropes. To release a good sequel there has to be more substance in the original.
Regardless I went in expecting a clever, punny Disney movie and that’s exactly what I got. There was a wide range of funny characters and (at least in North America) the stereotypes surrounding the different animals were spot on. As a cat person, I particularly enjoyed the characterization of the feline.

Overall I’d rate it a solid 6.5-7/10

The Secret Life of Pets - Movie Review