Review: The Secret Life of Pets

I'll admit I've been looking forward to this one since I first saw the trailer back at Christmas. I know, I know, I'm a mom and it's a kids' film and I want to see it as badly as I want to see "Star Trek: Beyond..." Sue me.
     All I have to say is GO SEE IT. Fans of the old Bugs Bunny methods of slapstick humor and inside jokes meant for grown-ups are going to love this film. I took two twelve-year-old girls and could hear them laughing constantly. And snorting. It's a good film when the self-absorbed tweens snort.
    If you happen to have been living in a box and missed all the trailers for this film, the run down is this "tiny dog" with the highly original name of Max is living the happy, spoiled life of a Manhattan pet in the typical hipster walk-up. Just as he's done bragging about how close he and his owner are, she shows up with Duke, I giant fur ball with an attitude, and presents him as Max's new "brother." Max is not pleased. Duke is a bully. Chaos ensues.
     Each of the characters is both a sketch of a prototypical comedy persona and a dead on impression of at least one of the pets living in my house today. Even the evil villain bunny is adorable and unstable in that psycho way every fluffy bunny owner secretly believes their little long-eared friend must be. People are barely character sketches in this film, which leans on a formula that only Disney seems to have pulled of successfully in the past.
     Unlike its competition, this film makes almost no attempt to pull at the heartstrings. There's a split-second hint of bittersweet, but seriously, only for a moment. This one is pure end-to-end movie fun, with or without the 3D aspect. (You don't need it to enjoy this one.) It was incredibly refreshing to just sit back and enjoy a kids' film that didn't slap me in the face with a "message." Sure, there's the typical theme of loyalty and friendship you find in most family films, but it's subtle and done so smartly as to be almost invisible. The "Secret Life of Pets" was also glaringly devoid of the usual brainless fart jokes and bathroom humor lazy writers lean on when it comes to most formulaic kid crap released lately.
     Fair warning - the "scary" aspects will probably be too much for the average feint-hearted four year old. There is definitely a lot of cartoon violence and some frightening creatures run with the bad bunny. There are car chases, massive accidents and some bad-a** poodle ninja action. Grade school and junior high kids will find it hilarious, pre-schoolers will probably cry, hence the PG rating. Oh, and grandpa won't fall asleep and snore like the old guy we sat next to earlier this year. (It was a G movie.)
     So, buy your tickets early - even the previews are selling out and for good reason. "The Secret Life of Pets" opens nationwide tomorrow, July 8th.