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Lately, Hollywood has made a point of bringing the stuff that I loved as a kid to the big screen—stuff like Nancy Drew, Transformers, and even Alvin and the Chipmunks. Also on the list is Disney’s Underdog, a live-action version of the popular ‘60s and ‘70s cartoon. It tells the story of a bomb-sniffing beagle (voiced by Jason Lee) who, after an unfortunate incident involving a ham, ends up on the street, shamed and forlorn. While he’s out moping, he’s picked up by a strange man and brought to a laboratory run by Dr. Simon Barsinister (Peter Dinklage), a mad scientist who’s doing research in genetic manipulation. The dog manages to escape—but not before some of Barsinister’s chemicals turn him into a super canine with super powers.
After escaping from Barsinister and his side-kick, Cad (Patrick Warburton), the dog is rescued by widowed ex-cop Dan Unger (Jim Belushi), who brings the dog home and names him Shoeshine. Dan’s teenage son, Jack (Alex Neuberger), isn’t exactly thrilled by the new pet—until he discovers Shoeshine’s powers. But as Shoeshine is saving the city and making friends with his new master, Barsinister sends Cad in pursuit of the super-pup’s DNA—so he can start his own super-army.
Despite the fact that it’s based on a cartoon that many of us grown-ups loved when we were kids, Underdog is definitely not a grown-up movie. Though the original was just a fun little cartoon about a timid pup who uses his superpowers to save the day, the live-action remake focuses a lot of its energy on sappy family drama instead of on the dog and his adventures. At one point, Underdog uses his apparent powers as a family psychologist to help Jack deal with the issues that he and his dad are facing because of his mom’s death. Then he lightens things up with a gross-out joke (most likely involving some sort of bodily function). So, for adults, Underdog is a little too sappy (and a little too corny) to be an enjoyable blast from the past.
On the other hand, it’s pretty clear that Underdog wasn’t made with a grown-up audience in mind (whether or not that was a good idea is open for discussion). The jokes are simple and silly—and younger viewers are sure to be amused by the CGI-enhanced talking animals. As far as the kids are concerned, it’s just a silly story about a clumsy talking dog who wears a sweater—and what’s funnier than a clumsy talking dog wearing a sweater? So while Mom and Dad won’t be impressed by this big-screen, live-action adaptation of an old favorite, it does still have one thing going for it: it’ll keep the kids entertained.
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