The Secret Life of Pets could be described as a four-legged version of Toy Story although not nearly as witty or charming. In the summer of animated movies, this one is a step or two below Finding Dory, but it’s leaps and bounds better than The Angry Birds Movie.
Louis C.K. provides the voice for Max, a terrier who lives a sheltered life with his owner, Katie. His whole life changes with the arrival of Duke (Eric Stonestreet), a very big and unkempt dog to say the least. They immediately begin a rivalry to win over their owner and one day out on the streets of New York, they get attacked by a series of cats and then taken to the pound.
A mysterious and energetic bunny named Snowball (Kevin Hart) rescues them both because Max and Duke convince him that they are homeless pets just like him. He leads them to his underground base of operations in a sewer and begins devising his plans to wipe out the human race. Yes, I just said a bunny attempting to obliterate mankind. His ambitions may be elaborate, but his skills and schemes make to be taken as seriously as Gru from Despicable Me.
After realizing they’ve gone missing, other animals in the neighborhood set out to find them. They include other cats and dogs as well as parakeet and a guinea pig. Just think of them as the Avengers of the animal kind.
The Secret Life of Pets isn’t exactly original and maybe it’s not meant to be. It borrows heavily from other great animated movies such as Toy Story and Despicable Me. The screenplay is surprisingly strong and much more geared towards adults than some might expect, but it always comes back to the kiddies with enough sight gags to entertain them.
The movie has some great animation and terrific voice work from its funny cast. I’m not sure if this movie will warrant a sequel, but I’m sure we’ll get one because it’s gonna be successful. Still, I am recommending it for its jolly, high-spirited nature.
Grade: B+
(Rated PG for action and rude humor.)
