By Pete Hammond
Story
Two orphaned kids, Andi (
Emma Roberts) and her mechanical whiz of a younger brother Bruce (
Jake T. Austin) live in a foster home with a couple of aging wannabe rock stars (
Lisa Kudrow,
Kevin Dillon) who are vehemently anti-pet. Running out of ways to keep their stray pooch Friday hidden in plain sight, they stumble on to an abandoned hotel that turns out to be the perfect shelter for Friday – and transform the place into luxury accommodations for all sorts of unwanted pets they spring from the local pound and the streets. But can they stay one step ahead of the law while keeping this United Nations of dogs in line?
Acting
Human actors don’t have a chance against the gifted assortment of canines. With dogs of every breed from a border collie who loves to herd sheep (don’t ask) to an English bulldog obsessed with chewing stuff, the trainers deliver a cast that flawlessly pulls off every dog trick in the book. Fortunately,
Roberts (
Nancy Drew) and
Austin are winning and likeable as the two main kids who share a need for family with their four-legged counterparts. Kudrow and Dillon don’t get a whole lot to do in strictly stereotyped roles, but
Don Cheadle as the kids’ social worker adds a nice touch of dignity and warmth to the story.
Direction
For his first American feature, German director
Thor Freudenthal got the supreme challenge: working with kids and animals. Getting this furry menagerie to act on cue could not have been easy but Freundenthal and his talented trainers make it look so. Particularly amusing are the various gadgets and elaborate contraptions Bruce builds to keep the doggies occupied and quiet -- including simulated car windows they can stick their heads out of, portable toilets, complicated feeding machines and on and on. Just like the current hit
Marley & Me, it’s a funny and heartwarming family comedy.