Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Jason Lee | ... | Underdog (voice) | |
Peter Dinklage | ... | Dr. Simon Barsinister | |
Jim Belushi | ... | Dan Unger | |
Patrick Warburton | ... | Cad | |
Alex Neuberger | ... | Jack | |
Taylor Momsen | ... | Molly | |
John Slattery | ... | Mayor | |
Amy Adams | ... | Polly (voice) | |
Brad Garrett | ... | Riff Raff (voice) | |
Samantha Bee | ... | Principal | |
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Timothy Crowe | ... | Police Chief |
Larry Vigus | ... | Security Guard | |
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Mario Mariani | ... | Police Officer |
Bates Wilder | ... | Cop | |
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Alexander 'Alex' Garde | ... | Small Boy |
A bomb-sniffing beagle is fired from the mayor's office for a faux pas. That night a mad scientist dognaps him and injects him with an elixir. The dog escapes, but now has superpowers. He's adopted by a security guard - an ex-cop, who's a widower with a moody teen son, Jack. The boy discovers that the dog, named Shoeshine by dad, has super powers, but it's their little secret. While Underdog saves people in distress, the mad scientist and his underling continue their plot to catch him and take over the city. There's also a girl Jack likes who has a dog that Shoeshine takes a shine to. Will every dog have his day? Written by <jhailey@hotmail.com>
I liked Underdog and so did my 7 and 9 year-olds. Of course it's not high art...but one of my favorite things about this flick was that there weren't any flatulence jokes. To me, this fact is worth at least 2.5 stars alone!
I loved Jason Lee's voice characterization of Underdog (unfortunately named 'Shoeshine' by his adopted family) and the villains were hilarious and outstanding. Of course, we have to live with plot implausibilities, a few tired clichés here and there, (in fact, poor Jim Belushi's entire character is a cliché!) ridiculous CGI 'live animals talking' special effects but so what? These are expected qualities of nearly all modern 'family' films.
I thought the Superman plot line was fun with the little Lois Lane cocker spaniel (why can't she recognize Underdog in the daytime? He's just minus his cape!). Our packed theater was laughing throughout this movie. And they broke out into applause at the end! 'Underdog' doesn't take itself seriously at all. It is what it is, and it is not going to win any Oscars, and it doesn't care. It's just fun.