That lazy, pizza-loving, over-stuffed orange cat is back! Yes, Garfield (Chris Pratt) is back, this time with an origin story of how he ended up in the home of Jon, his faithful owner. In this installment, Garfield’s comfortable life is disrupted when he and his best friend Odie are kidnapped by two dogs working for a villainous Persian Cat named Jinx (Hannah Waddingham). The movie takes a change in tone as Garfield feels that his dad abandoned him years ago, leading to a heartfelt reconciliation. This is the seventh Garfield movie, with the last one, “Garfield’s Pet Force” (2009), so yes, it’s time for another movie. In full disclosure, I haven’t seen the other films; I do recall TV specials, although I know who this cartoon character is, therefore I was eager to review the film. I found it highly entertaining, clever, and, most of all, funny.
This family-friendly animated movie, with its vibrant colors and inviting animation, which starts by introducing us to Garfield’s ‘Fat-cat‘ life. He and his best friend Odie, a dog he lives with, have a great time together, late-night snack binging, ordering several pizzas delivered by drones on an app from Jon’s (Nicholas Hoult) phone, watching ‘Catflix‘ (videos of cute cats sleeping, eating or chasing things), and basically just laying around all day. Jon sighs that Garfield and Odie maxed out his credit card as he’s content having Garfield and Odie as his family to live freely, without restrictions.
The tone changes when Garfield and Odie are kidnapped by two dogs that work for Jinx the villainous Persian Cat. She wants them to work with Garfield’s dad, Vic (Samuel L. Jackson), on a milk heist as she looking for revenge due to the time she spent in the pound after a scheme she and Vic pulled that caused her to get caught. When Vic rescues Garfield the movie takes another change in tone, as Garfield feels that his dad abandoned him years ago. Let’s just say, he tells him exactly the way he feels for the rest of the movie until they reconcile. In the tender scene, Garfield says, “Dad, I should have never mistrusted you.” This heartfelt moment truly captures the family-centered theme of the movie.
The villain storyline is a bit confusing for kids, as it deals with a milk farm being taken over by big business, along with “America’s Next Top Feline“ and Tom Cruise and Daniel Day-Lewis jokes. Also, the use of a cattle prod to shock Garfield, Odie, and Vic is unnecessary; it appears at least twice. For myself, the majority of the film was laugh-out-loud funny, especially the train roof-top sequences and the air duct scenes.
Singer and writer Jon Batiste’s song, “The Good Life“ is not just catchy, it’s a mood lifter. It sets the upbeat tone for Garfield’s homelife, which is shown as loving and caring. The song’s lyrics, along with the playful visuals of Garfield and Odie, add depth to the movie’s storytelling. Overall, I found the movie to be a delightful addition to the Garfield franchise, with its engaging plot, well-developed characters, and humorous dialogue. I’d recommend checking out “The Good Life” music video on YouTube as the words are displayed on the screen while Batiste is singing the song, along with Garfield and Odie, having fun. Enduring, heartfelt, family centered and comical best describe the movie.
Director: Mark Dindal
Screenplay: Paul A. Kaplan, Mark Torgove, and David Reynolds
Cast: Chris Pratt as the voice of Garfield, alongside the voices of Samuel L. Jackson, Hannah Waddingham, Ving Rhames, Nicholas Hoult, Cecily Strong, Harvey Guillén, Brett Goldstein, Bowen Yang
Run-time: 1 Hour 41 minutes
Studio: Sony Pictures
Sarah Knight Adamson© May 27, 2024
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