Mixed reviews for 'Secret Life of Pets' 鈥� where does Universal go from here?
'Pets' stars actors including Louis C.K., Jenny Slate, and Eric Stonestreet as animals who act very differently when their owners aren't around and who embark on an adventure.
'Pets' stars actors including Louis C.K., Jenny Slate, and Eric Stonestreet as animals who act very differently when their owners aren't around and who embark on an adventure.
Ever wonder what your furry friends are doing when you鈥檙e out of the house? Universal Studios did, too.聽
The new animated movie 鈥淭he Secret Life of Pets,鈥� which stars actors including Jenny Slate, Louis C.K., and Eric Stonestreet, is now in theaters and tells the story of how animals behave when their owners are away, with an enmity erupting between dog Max (Mr. C.K.) and a new pet, Duke (Mr. Stonestreet).
So far, the film has gotten mixed reviews from critics. Brian Truitt of USA Today called it an聽鈥渆ntertainingly nutty鈥� story that聽鈥渟parkles most when imagining some of its crazier shenanigans,鈥� although it聽鈥渕eanders in spots.鈥� Variety writer Peter Debruge, meanwhile,聽called it 鈥渢he studio鈥檚 most accomplished feature.鈥� However,聽鈥渨hile the [Illumination Entertainment] formula invites far more humor into the mix than the relatively emotion-driven Pixar approach...the studio still hasn鈥檛 quite figured out how to sell the sentimental side,鈥澛爃e wrote.聽聽
Meanwhile, A.O. Scott of the New York Times called it 鈥減retty good fun,鈥� though he found that 鈥渢his movie never achieves 鈥� and does not really aim for 鈥� the emotional richness or visual inventiveness of the better Pixar features, or the sly social consciousness of 鈥榋ootopia.鈥欌�� Nevertheless, it 鈥渉as a playful absurdity and a winning, friendly spirit,鈥� Mr. Scott writes.聽
鈥淧ets鈥� is released by Illumination Entertainment, which was acquired by Universal and is likely best known for the 鈥淒espicable Me鈥� films and the spin-off resulting from them, the 鈥淢inions鈥� movie.聽
Any animated movie released in America is battling Pixar and Disney 鈥撀爐he latter of which also owns Pixar, and released this year鈥檚 smash hit 鈥淶ootopia.鈥�
Illumination Entertainment did well with the 鈥淒espicable Me鈥� series, though 鈥� the first 2010 movie became a big hit and the second movie did even better, though the follow-up was less well-received by critics.聽
It also has a possibly valuable relationship with the works of children鈥檚 author Dr. Seuss. Illumination Entertainment released an animated version of Seuss鈥檚 鈥淭he Lorax鈥� in 2012, which became a box office hit, though critics panned it.聽
The 鈥淒espicable Me鈥� series 鈥� a third is planned for 2017 鈥� and Seuss adaptations could help bolster Illumination Entertainment's standing in the animated world. A new take on 鈥淗ow the Grinch Stole Christmas!鈥� starring 鈥淪herlock鈥� actor Benedict Cumberbatch is set for 2018.聽