Director: Jared Stern, Sam J. Levine
Distributor: Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
Duration: 105 minutes
DC League of Super-Pets (Blu-ray) – Movie Review
The movie industry is pumping out new superhero movies by the dozens, and we can clearly see that the initial charm of these movies is slowly wearing off. While most superhero films still tend to be entertaining, they all start to look and feel the same after a while. Luckily, sometimes we get original entries in the genre, such as The LEGO Batman Movie or other more adult animated films. Now, however, we’re taking a look at something completely different, as it’s not the superheroes that will be in the limelight for the following movie but it will be their pets. In DC League of Super-Pets, Superman’s dog, Krypto, and a ragtag team of various animals will have to save the members of the Justice League. The original trailers made the movie look a bit too childish, but we were proven wrong and were very entertained.
As a whole, the story of the film is quite simple. Krypto (Dwayne Johnson), Superman’s (John Krasinski) superpowered dog, loves hanging out with his owner. They go out on walks, fight crime together, and are generally just best buds. They recently defeated the villainous Lex Luthor (Marc Maron) again, solidifying this bond even further. Things get a bit more complicated when Superman starts spending more and more time with Lois Lane (Olivia Wilde). Krypto is sad and jealous, and Superman decides to find him a new friend at the animal pound. Krypto encounters a runaway dog, Ace (Kevin Hart), and decides to turn him in, returning him to the animal pound. Soon after, the fallout of Lex Luthor’s recent evil ploy caused pets in the animal pound to gain superpowers. One of them is out to get Superman and his allies, while the others just want to go somewhere to live out their lives in peace. Krypto, however, will need the help of these animals if he wishes to save the Justice League.
DC League of Super-Pets doesn’t do anything that we haven’t seen in other animated movies before. The film first sketches the overall situation, and then a massive problem arises, which of course has to be fixed while learning valuable lessons. The movie handles this well, and the predictable, yet enjoyable, story evolution is never dull and the overall pacing and flow are spot-on. We didn’t encounter any dull moments, and the characters themselves were properly fleshed out. We see some character evolution throughout the film, and there’s enough action to keep things exciting. It’s clear that this movie was designed for both younger and older viewers, as the overall theme is great for kids while the many adult references will make sure more mature viewers will get a few chuckles out of the experience.
The voice cast backing up this project is absolutely impressive. For the main characters, we were treated to performances by Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Kate McKinnon, Vanessa Bayer, Natasha Lyonne, and Diego Luna. These actors voiced the key pets of the film, and they do a superb job adding unique personalities to the adorable-looking animals. The actual superheroes are also voiced by amazing actors such as Keanu Reaves, Jameela Jamil, Jemaine Clement, and many others. While these characters (obviously) don’t get that much screen time, we did love how they were portrayed and voiced in this original story.
When purchasing a Blu-ray copy of the movie you’ll be treated to quite a few extras. These special features will mainly revolve around the creative process that went on behind the scenes, ranging from the voice cast who brought the characters to life to the actual animations for the film. There was also one extra that revolved around how to draw Krypto, but the artist here was using computer software, which was a bit odd for a tutorial for kids. Other than that, you’ll also be treated to a few deleted scenes that didn’t make the final cut.
Conclusion
DC League of Super-Pets is a very entertaining ‘superhero’ story that has a lot of adult references in it, making sure the entire family can enjoy this animated feature. We loved the overall story, the voice cast did a superb job, and we certainly appreciated this original DC story. Even though the movie has a very pleasant conclusion, we wouldn’t mind DC exploring these characters further, or creating more films that stray away from the typical superhero format.
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