Illumination Entertainment, the студия behind the Despicable Me franchise, brought us The Secret Life of Pets, a movie promising a hilarious peek into what our furry, scaled, and feathered companions get up to when we leave for work or school. While the concept is undeniably charming and ripe with comedic possibilities, the execution unfortunately leaves something to be desired. From a purely entertainment standpoint for young children, pets the movie delivers bright colors, some silly moments, and a heartwarming message about acceptance. You could certainly find worse ways to occupy your kids for an hour and a half. However, when you dig a little deeper, The Secret Life of Pets struggles to weave its promising premise, engaging characters, and coherent narrative into a truly satisfying cinematic experience. The film feels rushed, somewhat disorganized, and burdened with illogical plot choices that ultimately undermine its potential. It’s more akin to a rough draft than a polished final product.
The story kicks off by introducing us to Max, a cheerful Jack Russell Terrier voiced by Louis C.K., living a pampered life in a spacious Manhattan apartment with his beloved owner, Katie (Ellie Kemper). Max’s world is turned upside down with the sudden arrival of Duke (Eric Stonestreet), a large, boisterous Newfoundland presented as Max’s “new brother,” much to Max’s dismay. Predictably, the two dogs clash immediately, and their rivalry escalates, leading them to get lost on the streets of New York City. Gidget (Jenny Slate), a lovestruck Pomeranian from Max’s building, is the first to realize they are missing. Driven by her affection for Max, she rallies their diverse group of pet friends to embark on a rescue mission through the sprawling urban jungle.
Unfortunately, Max’s posse of pals are largely underdeveloped and serve primarily as vehicles for uninspired comedic sequences. They lack the depth and problem-solving ingenuity that made the supporting toys in Toy Story so memorable and integral to the plot. Unlike that Pixar classic, these side characters don’t really contribute meaningfully to resolving the central conflict. They dash around energetically, but when faced with obstacles, they mostly just blunder through them. The cleverness of Mr. Potato Head improvising a body from a tortilla is nowhere to be found; instead, we get Pops (Dana Carvey), an elderly Basset Hound, confidently but implausibly navigating construction sites.
Focusing more on the film’s antagonists, the “Flushed Pets,” might have actually strengthened the narrative. Snowball (Kevin Hart), a bunny with Napoleon complex and grandiose delusions of world domination, is undeniably the most entertaining aspect of pets the movie, despite his character also feeling somewhat underdeveloped. His gang of abandoned pets living in the sewers could have provided a more complex challenge for Duke, testing his loyalty to his new home, or offered a compelling way to challenge Max’s domesticated worldview and force him to grow. Snowball’s storyline presented the best opportunity to truly explore the characters and their motivations, allowing the audience to connect with those we’re supposed to be rooting for. Instead, the filmmakers opted for extended, somewhat repetitive chase scenes and a bizarre, pointless interlude in a sausage factory.
This brings us to the core issue with The Secret Life of Pets: the filmmakers’ handling of the central concept. The movie attempts to straddle two worlds, portraying its characters with distinctly human-like emotions and motivations while simultaneously relying on stereotypical pet behaviors for humor and charm. For example, Gidget enlists the help of Tiberius (Albert Brooks), a hawk who initially tries to eat her. Despite this near-death experience, she trusts him again almost immediately, simply because that’s what a plucky little dog “would do.” Max’s friends Mel (Bobby Moynihan) and Buddy (Hannibal Buress) remain oblivious to Max’s absence, easily distracted by butterflies and squirrels – classic dog behavior tropes. They are less a resourceful team of lovable rogues and more a collection of amiable but dim-witted animals, whose success in their mission feels largely dependent on the ever-shifting allegiances of the main villain. In a particularly jarring example of this inconsistent character logic, Snowball inexplicably joins forces with Max in the climax to rescue Duke, an alliance so contrived it renders the entire friends’ search and rescue effort almost completely meaningless.
Ultimately, pets the movie is a rushed, under-developed, and somewhat bland children’s film that barely stretches its simple plot across its runtime. As mentioned at the beginning, if you’re simply seeking a harmless and quickly forgotten family movie, you could certainly do worse. However, given the appealing concept and the pedigree of the animation studio behind it, one can’t help but feel that The Secret Life of Pets could, and should, have been so much more.
