The plot kicks into gear when Max’s owner, Katie (Ellie Kemper), brings home a new “pal” for Max, the bossy, oversized Duke (Eric Stonestreet). We’re introduced to likeable hound Max (voice of Louis C.K.), his neighbor Gidget (Jenny Slate), and the finicky fat cat Chloe (Lake Bell), who rejects her dried food in favor of refrigerator leftovers. Most of these vignettes can be found in the trailers so, like Minions, the best parts of the movie are available (legally) on YouTube. The movie’s opening scenes show (as one might expect from the title) how pets spend their days after their owners head off for work. The backgrounds are the most arresting aspect of the presentation. The people look like caricatures and the creatures have a cartoonish, stuffed animal appearance.
The visuals aren’t bad but there’s nothing special here. The Secret Life of Pets doesn’t score high on the “shock and awe” scale. I almost always come away from a Pixar film impressed by what the animators have accomplished. The film is heavily influenced by the Despicable Me style (not a surprise considering the cross-pollination between the Gru/Minions films and this one), which is okay except it doesn’t appear to have advanced in the last six years. The animation in The Secret Life of Pets has a generic quality. Toy Story is a proven commodity - a well-loved brand that has been hugely successful at the box office. There’s bonding between the old timer and the newcomer, an attempted rescue by the old timer’s friends, and various other elements that keep The Secret Life of Pets in familiar territory. There’s a Woody-type (the old reliable, much loved veteran whose territory has been invaded), a Buzz Lightyear-type (the brash newcomer), and (when we get into the wider world of New York’s alleys) a gang of animals who have been abandoned by their owners (this was a key plot element of Toy Story 3). The Secret of Pets is pretty much Toy Story with animals standing in for toys.
It didn’t take long for me to ascertain the cause. About 20 minutes into The Secret Life of Pets, an entertaining but inconsequential animated movie, I was struck by a powerful feeling of déjà vu.
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