Movie Review: ‘The Garfield Movie’

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Review by James Lindorf

Perhaps second only to “Peanuts,” “Garfield” has been a pop culture tour de force since first appearing in 1976 when it was known as “Jon.” The comic strip continues to publish new stories, and over the last 48 years, there have been TV shows, video games, movies, and a slew of suction cup window hangers. The first Garfield movie was released 20 years ago, in 2004, and over the next five years, they would release four more, but only one earned a trip to the big screen. Now, 15 years later, Jim Davis is ready to infuse his famous feline with a lot more heart and bring him back to theaters on May 24th with the help of director Mark Dindal.

“Cats Don’t Dance” was the directorial debut of former Disney animator Mark Dindal. It was the first non-Disney animated film to win the Best Animated Feature award at the Annie Awards. While it received solid reviews and acclaim from its peers, “Cats Don’t Dance” was a casualty of the Turner/Time Warner merger, earning just $3,566,637 against its $32 million production budget. Dindal’s success as a creator didn’t go unnoticed, and his former employer came calling. His second project, “The Emperor’s New Groove,” was a production nightmare and underwhelmed at the box office before finding a status between hit and cult hit. He followed that up quickly with another disappointing turn at the box office with “Chicken Little,” which would be his last time in the director’s chair before “Garfield.”

Typically, Dindal is a writer on the films he directs, but this time, he is working with a script from the writing team of Paul A. Kaplan and Mark Torgrove (Late Bloomer) and his collaborator from “The Emperor’s New Groove” David Reynolds (Finding Nemo). In this latest adventure, Garfield (Chris Pratt), our favorite Monday-hating lasagna-loving orange tabby, is living a lavish indoor life with his owner, Jon (Nicholas Hoult), and fellow pet, Odie (Harvey Guillén). His life of ordering takeout and watching Catflix is interrupted by an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father, a scruffy street cat named Vic (Samuel L. Jackson). Vic is in trouble and will need help from Garfield and Odie to call off his old associate Jinx (Hannah Waddingham) and her two attack dogs, Roland (Brett Goldstein) and Nolan (Bowen Yang). Their task is to commit a daring milk heist from a state-of-the-art dairy protected by security guard Marge (Cecily Strong). Their only hope is to get the help of Otto (Ving Rhames), an inside bull.

“Garfield” has an interesting animation style. The fur looks pretty good; it feels a little more like felt than actual fur but moves well. The strangest choice for the look of the film was the decision to give all but one character two eyes that are one big eye with two pupils. There is no reason given or that I could infer to explain why Nolan was the only character to have two separate eyes. However, it was easy to forget once it stopped being distracting because it is visually on par with most animated films from the last few years.

The chances of other choices being a problem depend on your age. Pratt as Garfield differs from what we have heard in “Garfield and Friends” from Lorenzo Music and Bill Murry in the 2004 movie. It is not a bad performance, but it doesn’t capture the Garfield we are used to. It is higher pitched and much more energetic, which should work great for kids who want something fast talking and high energy. It pairs well with the new take on Odie, that is far more competent than the dimwit whose claim to fame was being kicked off the edge of the table. Perhaps the most significant change or misstep for long-time fans is that this story is more in line with what we would expect from the other famous orange cat, Heathcliff. It isn’t a problem on its surface because this is a very different medium than a three-panel comic strip, and it is meant to encourage a new generation to become fans. It all comes down to the quality of the story, which is relatively generic, feeling like a dozen other movies while doing nothing to stand out. Thankfully, it has some genuine emotion about long-lost and found families. Sometimes, the best place for us isn’t with the ones we are related to but the ones we find along the way. Other times, nothing beats a reunion and getting the answers to your questions.

“Garfield” is perfectly capable of occupying children’s time and minds without driving adults crazy. It expands on the classic world of Garfield, opening up the possibility of new stories. Unfortunately, it may be too much of a departure for older fans while not being unique or challenging enough to make up for the changes. Luckily, it offers laughs, heart, a good soundtrack and some cute cat videos that help the time pass quickly. “Garfield” earns a 3 out of 5, making it more of a nice snack than a full meal.

Genre: Kids & Family, Comedy, Animation, Adventure
Original Language: English
Rating: PG (Mild Thematic Elements|Action/Peril)
Director: Mark Dindal
Screenwriter: Paul A. Kaplan, Mark Torgrove, David Reynolds
Producer:John Cohen, Broderick Johnson, Andrew A. Kosove, Steven P. Wegner, Craig Sost, Namit Malhotra
Distributor: Columbia Pictures
Production Co: Columbia Pictures, Stars Collective Films Entertainment Group, Alcon Entertainment
Release Date (Theaters): May 24th, 2024
Runtime: 1h 41m