Hotel for Dogs (PG)
Scott:
Tonight I am reviewing Hotel for Dogs
a movie about the social disconnect of modern consumers and their ancestors… Nah, I’m kidding, it’s about a hotel… for dogs.
Mike couldn’t make this movie.
If you like dogs this movie is for you. There are big dogs, little dogs, loud dogs, quiet dogs, cute dogs and depending on your taste, ugly dogs. They really do come in all shapes and sizes and that’s a good thing. I really liked the dog diversity. Everyone’s favorite dog is in this movie.
The movie stars Emma Roberts as Andi, and Jake T. Austin as Bruce. The two are orphaned siblings that have bounced from foster home to foster home with little to show for it. They watch out for each other and for their dog Friday.
Both Roberts and Austin were well cast in the movie. Austin seems like everybody’s little brother. Roberts is great as the big sister, torn between being the big sister or the girlfriend.
Friday is a very well trained Jack Russell Terrier. Until Friday, I didn’t know Jack Russell Terriers could ever slow down. He really is the star of the movie and steals every scene he’s in. I may be mistaken, but I think Friday (I don’t know his real name) also appears in Paul Blart: Mall Cop.
Andi and Bruce are currently living with ‘The Wicked Step-Mom-ish’ Lois and Carl Scudder played by Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Dillon. First off, does Kudrow look like she’ll be 46 this year? The first thing that came to mind when I saw Dillon was, ‘Cool, Drama got a role’. Drama is Dillon’s character from Entourage. The two are the ditzy, self-absorbed foster parents you always see in these movies. I liked them though. It was cool to see real actors playing the role instead of the one-and-doners we normally see.
The only person that seems to really care for the kids is Bernie, played by Don Cheadle. This is the same guy that has been nominated, and has won, more awards than I can count here. The great actor of Traffic, Hotel Rwanda, and Traitor is showing up as a social services worker in a kid’s movie. It was odd to see him, but (of course) he did a good job. He even had one of the funniest lines in the movie.
Life is tough for two kids and a dog, especially if the foster parents don’t know about the dog. After an incident with a dog catcher the kids realize the need to move Friday to a new location. They find an old abandoned hotel and, with the help of Dave (Johnny Simmons), Heather (Kyla Pratt) and Mark (Troy Gentile), convert it into a dog hotel
I’m not sure how many dogs they end up with; it has to be around 40 or so. Bruce is a really good Rube Goldberg type inventor and he creates all kinds of gadgets for the dogs. To say any more would spoil the ending, so I’ll stop there.
It’s a cute movie, and kids and dog lovers will love it. It has all of the jokes kids like and enough of a story to keep the parents around. Oh yeah, it has a bunch of cute dogs too.
I rate this a 3 out of 5 overall and a 4 out of 5 for kids movie.
While watching the movie I couldn’t help thinking Johnny Simmons looked liked a young Ethan Embry. Look them up and see what you think.
