Blu-ray Review: Dr. Dolittle: Million Dollar Mutts (2009)

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Although the superior version of the same concept can be found via Walt Disney's unfairly maligned Beverly Hills Chihuahua-- which was viewed mostly through the tiny-but-mighty eyes of its feisty canine heroine (voiced by Drew Barrymore)--there's still an awful lot of enjoyment to be discovered in the fifth entry and third direct-to-disc installment of the Dr. Dolittle franchise.

While it doesn't boast the same polish or cast roster of Chihuahua (although honestly, not every movie can include one of the Three Tenors in a supporting role!), it does manage to surpass not just the Buddies franchise of the House of Mouse but also marks the very first entry in the Dolittle series I've been able to stand without pressing stop countless times to go do something else.

This being said, it does contain some trademark rude humor. However, while the debut film in Eddie Murphy's titular take on the series--one of his many family themed box office successes that have propelled unfortunately propelled his career into the state it's in today rather than inspire "quality" work--relied far too heavily on toilet jokes, this one genuinely feels as though it could qualify for a G.

Predictable from the start yet so bright and energetic that at times it appeared as though it could be the movie version of a could be a candy commercial, Million Dollar Mutts offers spirited jokes about a monkey crafting masterpieces on his Etch-a-Sketch and a rapper's bunny who prefers classical music.

The movie reunites us with Kyla Pratt as Maya Dolittle--the teenage daughter of Murphy's character who has inherited her father's ability to talk to animals. And in what will most likely be Maya's last adventure since it finds her embarking on a collegiate career after which her character jokes, she'll be like twenty-five or "OLD," the seventeen year old girl becomes dismayed when she realizes that her course of study in veterinary medicine at San Francisco University is short on hands-on work with animals and heavy on advanced math and science coursework in its roughly seven year time-span.

Understandably frustrated about the length of academic study coupled with the typical sense of teenage wish for instant gratification, desire to skip all the hard stuff and moreover, just not getting why she "should have to do what everybody else does" since she's a Dolittle, Maya begins having second thoughts. While passing on college is the last thing her mother would let her get away with, it only delights her loyal dog Lucky (Norm MacDonald) who selfishly was trying everything in his power to keep her from leaving.

Luckily for Lucky, fate in the form of a TV crew intervenes and after footage of Maya coaxing a cat out of a tree captures the attention of Tegan Moss' ditzy Paris Hilton inspired heiress Tiffany Monaco. Worried about her depressed "Princess" who she's shocked to discover is really a "Prince," Tiffany flies in from L.A. and recruits Maya to costar in a brand new talk show where she promises Maya can help cure Hollywood pets of what ails them on a weekly basis.

Dangling the irresistible carrots of Rodeo Drive shopping sprees, mansions that look like movie studios, face-time with celebrities she admires, as well as sensing a spark between Maya and Branon Jay McLaren's cute TV star Brandon-- Tiffany's lifestyle seems too enticing to resist so Maya trades tuition for television.

And while of course, we foreshadow that soon Maya will start to realize there's more to helping animals than simply talking to them and that compromising her gift for superficial television fame isn't exactly what the original Dr. Dolittle would've ordered.

Yet despite the obvious fact that after five features in eleven years, Kyla Pratt is quickly outgrowing this series and her scenes are starting to feel understandably forced as she ages and ironically in this one, she has more chemistry with the pets than the people in true Dolittle fashion), the film is still a fun time-waster.

Additionally, when delivered in the highest quality of Fox Blu-ray with sparkling picture and sound (they have yet to disapoint as a studio even with direct-to-disc titles), Pratt's Maya and director Alex Zamm's Million Dollar Mutts would've made Dr. Dolittle himself proud. Well, okay if not the author Hugh Lofting who penned the children's series nor Rex Harrison who starred inthe bland '60s musical take on the material than definitely it'd cause her franchise dad, Eddie Murphy (with whom she starred in the first two before venturing out on her own) beam with pride.

Nicely budget conscious, the first-rate performance of the Blu-ray would've been enough on its own but perhaps taking a cue from the studio's awesome Marley & Me package (which offered a DVD and a digital file download), Dr. Dolittle's Blu-ray can be purchased by those who've yet to upgrade to the format as it comes with a bonus DVD which contains all of the same special features that the Blu-ray offers.

Doing a side-by-side comparison of the DVD on both an upconvert player and standard DVD player, there's a marked difference in the picture quality (much more so than the sound) when you move from the Blu-ray to the DVD so owners of the Blu-ray will have fun bringing it along to places equipped with the player to check out the immediate changes from the full 1080HD quality. Yet keeping in mind the fact that its target audience and reason for being is simply to amuse kids and teens, the DVD more than delivers as the Mutt version to the Million Dollar picture of the Blu.

The Flight Before Christmas (2008)

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I must admit to being a bit of a soft-touch when it comes to Christmas specials. Although I remember making cookies and getting more frosting on my fingers than I did on the sugary confections, riding a sled down "suicide hill," having to put on layers of clothing just to make it to the bus stop, and unwrapping beautifully packaged presents in a matter of greedy seconds, I have the fondest memories of Christmas entertainment.

While spending a year employed at Hallmark cured me of my love for Christmas carols since they played incessantly for what seemed like four months, I still feel a child-like anticipation when faced with another animated special or film related to Santa Claus, the elves, reindeer, and all of our friends at the North Pole. Yes, Virginia, I never run out of Christmas entertainment and while Garfield, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and The Muppets all offered memorable holiday episodes that I enjoyed far more than the traditional old-fashioned Rudolph special that hits the airwaves like clockwork every December, I always looked equally forward to a new crop of productions as well (both in the theater and at home).

When I glimpsed some of the majestic animated stills from the upcoming straight-to-DVD feature-length, internationally produced holiday movie, The Flight Before Christmas (scheduled to fly onto shelves on 10/28 courtesy of the Weinstein Company and Genius Entertainment), I couldn't wait to add it to my collection of modern Christmas classics. And even though I found the animation far more dazzling once the DVD began to play as the nuances of every character and dimensions of the intricate computer generated effects offer an unparalleled digital viewing experience to those of us raised on videotape and rabbit-eared television reception, I was stunned to discover that the plot-line of Flight was extremely dark and very disturbing.

Although it's rated "G" and described as "a festive addition to the holiday library that the entire family can enjoy" in its press release, I soon realized that it was a work which I felt that it would be best to advise parents to avoid for children under the age of ten. This being said, initially, it sets itself up harmlessly enough. The film centers on the ambitious Niko, a young reindeer who wants to join Santa's Flying Forces of brave reindeer alongside his father whom he's never met, but we deduce in a rather abrupt, subtle yet still pointed conversation revealing that he'd impregnated our young hero's mother as though she were a groupie in a one night stand-- or rather-- sleigh ride.

Unable to fly no matter how badly he wishes he could as he's coached on to believe in himself and ignore the bullies who thrive on his failure by his loyal squirrel and surrogate father Julius (Norm MacDonald), Niko secretly makes plans to practice his skills and pursue flying lessons on Antler's Hill. When he mistakenly leads the villainous and deadly pack of wolves back to his community of Home Valley, suddenly the entire population is at risk by the wolves who intend on eating every reindeer in sight. When Niko and Julius separate from the group along with a singing weasel named Wilma (Emma Roberts), soon the wolves decide to change plans and make their way to take on not just Santa's Flying Forces of Reindeer but eat Santa as well as all of the little children to whom presents are delivered around the world.

With such a macabre and off-putting, sinister plot, The Flight Before Christmas is sure to be upsetting to young children who may develop nightmares about wolves aspiring to eat Santa and babies as well as a storyline that just doesn't fit the holiday film paradigm by including a "River of Certain Doom," Santa's reindeer who act like a group of hard-drinking, horny frat-boys, and a teenage runaway etc. And while ultimately it offers an excellent message of being true to yourself and choosing your own family among friends and those who love you without question and the sheer gorgeous quality of the animation is remarkable and rivals that of first-run, big screen animated fare, this international production from numerous European countries has its heart in the right place but just doesn't quite understand how to craft something appropriate for its intended demographic. Of course, a darkly comedic holiday tale is fine in theory and for adults has worked well with Bad Santa as well as teens who latched onto Tim Burton's cult classic Halloween/Xmas hybrid The Nightmare Before Christmas or even the classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas from Dr. Seuss.

However, without trying to market or develop itself correctly to tweens and early teens of the Harry Potter age and instead by packaging it as though it were as harmless and sweet-natured as other holiday films for true youngsters, Flight just crashes and burns. Not helped by awkward voicing by Norm MacDonald or a poor script-- the sole saving grace is the masterful CGI animation as it is sheer textbook-level. Although it would've been best appreciated as though it consisted only of select stills playing in a digital picture frame with the sound off and leaving the idea of going Hannibal Lecter on St. Nick tossed outside in the snow-- without enough layers of clothes on for protection so that ultimately it will end up freezing and disappearing from sight altogether, ensuring that sugar plums are the only dessert dancing in children's heads and not visions of the corpse of Santa Claus.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

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