Pretty Good

Great Film overall

As Good As It Gets

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

Why high school it won't be funny and it was not funny its was barley funny and George Lopez was awful at voice acting and this movie is just awful i liked it a little but its too ...... just too dumb and all they really did was copy a simple plot of high school rejects its annoying and dumb.Also animals are very bad at surfing so how did a dog who is scared of water go on a surf board and go though a massive wave and the kids dad did not look even worried when they lost vision of him.all though the ending was smarter then the entire movie the rest of the film lets it down animals fighting not the kinda thing you want kids seeing.also the kids did OK i guess at acting the parents were not very good and the way the animals speak they movement of the mouths are really bad they go the wrong way and wrong movement I've seen games with better talking faces / mouths overall this movie is dull and boring 3/10

Here comes Marmaduke! The clumsy, silly Great Dane leaps onto the big screen with the voice of Owen Wilson! Sounds hilarious right? Think again. This movie is awful, absolutely awful. Marmaduke focuses on the life of Marmaduke, the clumsy Great Dane mentioned above. Marmaduke and his family are moving to a new home and he is nervous about fitting in to the new place. His owner works for a dog food company, and goes to work/meetings every day at the dog park, where he brings Marmaduke. There, Marmaduke finds friends with the three outcast dogs, Mazie, an Austrailian Shepherd, Giuseppe, a Chinese Crested, and Raisin, a Dachshund mix. He is snubbed by the popular and beautiful Collie Jezebel, as well as her tough, controlling Beauceron boyfriend Bosco, and the rest of the popular "pedigrees". With the help of the family cat Carlos (who is horribly voiced by George Lopez) and a wild party he throws, Marmaduke gains more popularity with Jezebel and the other pedigrees. Through some dumb antics and "lessons" Marmaduke realizes what is truly important in the movie's predictable conclusion.This movie is stupid, annoying, and hard to watch. Moreover, it's not about dogs! This is a movie about an awkward teenager fitting into a new high school, only they use dogs and a dog park instead of a boy and a school. The movie is so aware of this that it first shows a teenage boy in school while Marmaduke first describes himself in the opening narration. There is little to nothing "dog" about this movie, and most of the voice actors are so miscast that it looks stupid when you see the animals "talk". Some kids might like this, but it is absolutely painful for adults. If your kids want to see a movie with talking dogs, get them Homeward Bound. If you want to watch a movie with a goofy Great Dane, watch The Ugly Dachshund.

Marmaduke the Great Dane (voice of Owen Wilson) lives in Kansas with his owners, Phil (Lee Pace) and Debbie (Judy Greer). The family also includes son Brian, an elementary student, Barbara, the teen daughter and a darling Siamese cat (voice of George Lopez). One day, Phil proposes the family move to Southern California, for he has received a marketing job offer from a pet food company, Bark Organic. The small firm is run by a mild tyrant (William H. Macy) but the salary is terrific. After some initial hesitation and some protests from Barbara, they make the move. Once there, Barbara has trouble making friends and so does Marmaduke! Also, the job is more difficult than Phil expected, making long hours a reality. At the dog park, Marmaduke is rebuffed by the ruling dogs, Jezebel the Collie (voice of Fergie) and her boyfriend, a Doberman, but stray dog Maizie (voice of Emma Stone) and her two small sidekicks give the Dane their paws of friendship. But, oh no! Marmaduke gets a crush on Jezebel, even though Maizie has a secret yen for the Duke. Thus, a complicated "puppy love triangle" is born. From Phil using Marmaduke in some of the company's new commercials to the Duke throwing a party for the canines at the house, when the masters are away, fun alternates with big trouble for everyone. Will happiness overcome conflict at the end? Yes, of course! This is an adorable film, with a great cast and a humorous script. Wilson is a stitch as Marmaduke while Lopez, Fergie, Stone, Kiefer Sutherland, Sam Elliott and all of the other animal voice actors do a wonderful job. Pace, Greer and Macy do nice work as well. Then, too, the film's sets and cinematography are superb, making for a very colorful and dazzling appearance. Finally, the direction exhibits plenty of energy and charm. Did you miss Marmaduke at the theaters, like me? Get off the porch and run to the nearest DVD outlet. You will say Hail to the Duke after any showing!

In short, the CGI talking dogs was done extremely well, even carrying on through nuances found in most dogs - head-tilts, twitches, etc. Typical past CGI attempts practically demanded that the subject remain still while the effects are applied. So, I have to give very high marks to the special effects. The Marmaduke character is very likable as are most of the ensemble here. The story is predictable but I had a fairly good time and even found the humor to be occasionally very funny from a dog-oriented viewpoint. I truly didn't expect much from this but ended up liking it quite a bit. Having said that I will say that I enjoyed it once and will probably never watch it again, but I believe kids 7 to 11 would enjoy it quite a bit.