Album Reviews
Movies
Concert Reviews
Movie Resources
Concert Reviews
Book Reviews

Top 10
Resources
Contact Us

 
Cat lovers, your favorite orange comic strip fat cat is on the big screen. Computer generated Garfield is in the theater complete with rotundability, ego to match and appetite for lasagna.
 
The story is about the big G going through life eating and sleeping until Odie the dog enters the scene. The first half of Garfield is rather slow moving as we go with the lazy guy through his daily routine. However, when Odie comes on the scene, things pick up, especially the last third of the movie when Garfield is on the move. 
 
The actors do well working with a computer-generated image and you can believe that Garfield is being petted or jumps on Jon’s lap. Garfield, because of his unnaturally orange fur, doesn’t look real, but this is about as good as special effects can get. The animal actors are fine, including the active, Fred Astaire-dancing Odie or the less-than-smart Luka. Breckin Meyer’s Jon is brighter than the comic strip Jon. For a lady vet, Jennifer Love Hewitt is nice but her unrealistically short skirts would allow plenty of scratches from the animals. Stephen Tobolowsky plays the villain with teeth-gnashing intensity.
 
Garfield was brought to the screen with love and the ambience of the comic strip while spreading the message that a home isn’t a home without a pet or two or even three, that too many animals are in shelters and shock collars are evil. It stays within the G rating and would be appropriate for younger children. 

Copyright 2004 Marie Asner
Submitted 6/20/04

In recent years, Hollywood seems to have gotten some sick, twisted pleasure out of making movies about things that we treasured as a child and changing them to be more adult.  Two recent examples include a hyperactive Grinch and a Cat in the Hat that looked like Satan.  Fans of Garfield can rest assured that the fat cat that we see in this movie is the one that we remember.
 
Garfield is the only CGI character and Odie, Nermal, and Arlene don't look like their cartoon counterparts. Whoever picked the cats to play Nermal and Arlene did a horrible job. They did, however, do a good job picking the dog to play, Luca, the neighborhood dog that Garfield terrorizes.
 
The director of the movie did a great job capturing the spirit of Garfield, who is a fat, lazy, but also hip cat.  The scenes with Garfield in the beginning of the movie before Odie is introduced are some of the best of the movie.  Bill Murray does an excellent job as the voice of Garfield and whoever wrote the script gave him some great material to work with.  
 
This movie retains the charm of the comic strip and the Garfield and Friends TV show.  Christian parents can take their families to this film and not have to worry.  Most of the violence in this movie is typical Garfield violence with him pushing Odie off a chair.  The only moments that may worry a few parents are scenes involving a shock collar that delivers electric shocks to the wearer.  There are a few uses of the name of God, but no swear words, sexual references, or other things to cause parents concern.
 

This movie was not amazing, but it is definitely a good, fun family movie that parents can take their kids to.  It is also a movie that fans of Garfield will enjoy.

Burton Wray 6/20/2004