Film Review: DC League of Super-Pets

 

Sexuality/Nudity Mature
Violence Acceptable
Vulgarity Acceptable

Anti-Catholic Philosophy Mature

I love DC and their characters.  As a fan, there was so much that I enjoyed about this movie.  But what holds me back from recommending it is the simple fact that it is marketed to children.

The story focuses on Krypto (Dwayne Johnson), Superman's dog.  After a touching opening that explains their closeness, Krypto begins to feel jealous of increasingly serious relationship between Clark (John Krasinski) and Lois (Olivia Wilde).  Meanwhile, an evil hairless hamster named Lulu (Kate McKinnon) has used her evil genius to gain superpowers.  The problem is that she inadvertently gave powers to fellow pets in pet store:

-Ace (Kevin Hart): a tough-skinned, soft-hearted dog who becomes invulnerable

-PB (Vanessa Bayer): A pig who is a super fan of super heroes, particularly Wonder Woman, who can change her size at will.

-Metron (Natasha Lyonne): A turtle with horrible eyesight that gains super speed.

-Chip (Diego Luna): an anxious squirel who can shoot out lightning bolts.

When Lulu targets Superman for revenge, Krypto must enlist the help of this motley crew of super-powered animals to save the Man of Steel.

In terms of quality, DC League of Super-Pets is actually very good.  The animation is fun and dynamic.  The art design is able to take characters that are familiar and iconic and give fresh takes on their looks.  I was also a big fan of the subtle art designs, like the way Krypto's face shape mirrors Superman's shield logo or how Ace's ears are analogous to Batman's cowl.

The action sequences are actually exciting with lots of spectacle. The movie mines a lot of fun and humor from the creative ways the characters learn to use their powers.  The voice performances are excellent as well.  The chemistry that we often see between Johnson and Hart is still here in animated form.

Again, as a DC fan, I loved the dozens of Easter Eggs spread throughout the film, such as a poster for a Broadway musical of Catwoman that looks like Cats, or a Steakhouse named after western character Jonah Hex.

The writing is where my conflict truly lies.  Writers Jared Stern (who also co-directed) and John Whittington wrote vivid characters that explore the messiness of relationships in an honest and humorous way.  Most of the jokes land pretty well.  Even the heartfelt moments tend to work.  There were times where I would compare this movie to upper-middle PIXAR quality (which is actually pretty high praise).

The problem is the content of the writing is incredibly inappropriate for a children's movie.  If this movie was geared towards teens and adults, I wouldn't have as much of a problem with this.  But every time an age-inappropriate moment occurred, it pulled me completely out of the movie.  Not only that, but it made me think of the movie Turning Red, which did the exact same thing.  Those familiar with this blog know how much I loathe Turning Red.  Bring that movie to my thoughts while watching DC League of Super-Pets did not help endear the movie to me.

Here are a list of some of the content that parents should be aware of:

-Superman and Lois are engaged in a pre-marital sexual relationship (the two are clearly sleeping together)

-depictions of same-sex engaged couple

-adult vulgarity bleeped out throughout.

-sexual innuendo from Metron as she hits on inanimate objects.

As an adult, I find this eye-rollingly tedious.  But if I was a parent who brought my child here, I would feel sucker-punched by the content.  And the frustrating part is that none of this mature content was necessary to the movie.  If the film makers has just exercised a bit more judgment and restraint, I think more people could come to enjoy the good parts of this film.  Like Turning Red, it just seems so pernicious to take mature content and rub it in children's noses.

But as it is, you should use your own judgment regarding exposing yourself or your children to the content here.