Strays - Review
Growing up in the 1990s, there was not the vast array of easily accessible content that there is today, which meant if we wanted to watch a movie, it meant a trip to a Blockbuster. One movie I often asked for was Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey, a film that told the story of two dogs and a cat crossing the vast American wilderness to return home. So, when I learnt that a movie was being made, that used a similar concept and story, I knew I had to see it, it was perhaps not what I was expecting and that is the best part.
Strays tells the story of Shit-brain, I mean Reggie, a little dog whose owner Doug is a massive idiot and in order to spite his ex, keeps Reggie upon their breakup. As Doug does not like Reggie, he treats him very poorly, but for Reggie everything is just a game. Determined to get rid of the dog, Doug starts to drive Reggie to places over town and throws his tennis ball, before speeding off. Unable to get rid of him, Doug undertakes a massive drive and tries again, this time with success, leaving Reggie to become a stray. After a night in the cold, Reggie meets Bug, another dog of the streets who explains the rules and introduces him to Hunter and Maggie, two dogs who are not strays, but embrace the lifestyle selectively. After a night out on the town, Reggie realizes that maybe Doug wasn’t the best owner and the four of them aim to return to Doug, with Reggie aiming to take a bite out of Doug.
While the premise might seem simple, the movie has no issues in embracing the canine life, and with the movie being rated for adults, it doesn’t hold back at all. The first time the four run together, they behave much like a group of friends would, when hitting the town and just going wild, only here its wild for dogs. There is a sequence where the four end up in a fair, complete with rides and food, only for them to react to fireworks that the humans adore, in a way that only dogs can - with complete fear. The movies embracing of its dog point of view, doesn’t just mean the nice stuff, there is dog barf and plenty of interactions with stationary objects. Some of the moments are very in your face and the movie doesn’t hold back, there is an entire part of the film that will honestly make those with weaker constitutions want to look away. But in the chaos, there are some incredibly funny moments, some of them will make you giggle and others will put tears in your eyes, subjective to what you find funny though.
While the dogs are all very lovely to look at, the charm really comes from the four actors that bring them to life, with Will Ferrell leading the charge with Reggie. While Will can be very grating in some roles, here he plays the role with a lot of boyish charm, that means you can’t help but feel sorry for Reggie, even when he does something stupid. Jamie Foxx just feels like he is being himself, just with a more four-legged approach to things, even when Bug is being honest, he still has snark to him. Isla Fisher voices the Australian Shepherd, which just means that we get to hear a lot of Australian speak when the character is quite honest about her feelings, both those she embraces and those she tries to hide. The voice that might surprise many is that of Randall Park, he picks up the largest dog Hunter, but as Randall has a fairly quiet voice, it feels a bit misplaced. However, there is just so much fun had with the juxtaposition and the end result is a character that feels like they have the most growth.
A little address on the speaking aspect to the dogs, when they are talking to each other, they have mouths that move, like a humans would. At first it seems a little jarring, but you will quickly move past it as you begin to care about the dogs. There are a few scenes where the use of cgi is clearly evident, but there were also a few times when I saw some shots that seemed to have the dogs placed in later. They are not frequent, but if you spot them, just know they pass by fairly quickly.
Strays is a movie that features a number of adorable puppies, but it is not meant for anyone under 18 and for good reason. There are jokes that touch upon every subject that most parents would never want to talk to their kids about, unless they have to. The four actors bring their respective canine alter-egos to life with heart, smarts and a little aww. For those who are willing to put up with dog barf and other dog actions, there is a great movie here and just like dog years, time will fly by as you watch it, but don’t worry it is time well spent.
The Score
8.5
Early viewing provided by Universal Pictures
The Pros
+A simple story that never gets to bogged down by a complex plot, the dogs have a mission and they go about getting it done
+The actors bring a lot of heart to the roles and even the smaller roles feel perfectly cast
The Cons
-There are a lot of dog actions that might turn some folks off, if they don’t like the grosser aspect of animals
-The movie does feel a little rushed at times, with the plot speeding ahead at all times
