Marmaduke

I have recently started writing film reviews for a website and this was my second assignment for obsessed with film. I must admit, I wasn't looking forward to going, but my editor suggested taking my little cousins with me as they really wanted some childrens' opinions on the film. So, on a Sunday morning I took them up to Leicester Square for some talking animal action. In fact, the whole day was set up with children in mind, with face painting, cupcakes, and lots of activities before the film so it was actually a pretty fun day!

Here is the review:

The Great Dane from comic strip fame Marmaduke and his family make the move from Kansas to The O.C. when Phil Winslow (Lee Pace) gets a job offer he can't refuse.


Live-action animals who can talk is one of my pet hates (pun intended) when it comes to film, but Marmaduke was actually quite watchable and the majority of people who will go and see it, young children and dog lovers, will probably enjoy it. The observational humour from the comic strip is not apparent in the film, so fans may be sorely disappointed.

Owen Wilson is the driving force in this film, playing the title character, he is actually quite endearing and his charm did win me over. With a supporting cast of big names such as Keiffer Sutherland, Fergie from the Black Eyed Peas and Emma Stone from Zombieland, you may expect a stronger film. What is delivered instead is a throwaway comedy that has nothing really original in it. I was bemused by the casting of William H Macy, as Phil Winslow's new demanding boss, as the role is played so straight and is so fleeting virtually anyone could have done it. Sutherland, on the other hand, is cast well as the head of a pedigree pack of dogs, with a beachside lair in which the dogs party all night and lead a life unknown to their owners. He does evil extremely well.

The CGI is uninventive and at times highly reminiscent of the Scooby Doo films of the early noughties. It doesn't offer much for adults who may take their children to see this film, as it is extremely juvenile humour - a couple of fart jokes, some typical slapstick and a few references to a certain teen programme set in their new location.

Obviously, a lot of thought went into the wide choice of dogs used in the film with a Blue Merle Australian Shepherd, a Beauceron, an English Mastiff and some miniature Pinschers, so there is so much for dog lovers to enjoy here, although the CGI mouth motion is at times crass and off putting.

A simple romantic comedy, including a (dog) love triangle, a few life lessons and a whole lot of family values. It is watchable, inoffensive and I am sure most young children will very much enjoy it.

And as much as the day was aimed at children, I just couldn't help myself...

My editor very kindly allowed me to publish this review on my blog, but from now on they will appear on http://www.obsessedwithfilm.com/

Coming up soon: Reviews of the The Switch and Going the Distance and a Q&A with Justin Long, Drew Barrymore and Oliver Jackson-Cohen.

When We Were Orphans by Kazuo Ishiguro

Set between 1930s London and Shanghai and recollections of pre-war Shanghai as a child, Christopher Banks, a renowned detective tries to solve his first and greatest mystery - the disappearance of his parents.


I am really taken with the work of Ishiguro from reading Remains of the Day and Never Let Me Go. This book carries similar qualities from his previous work but didn't give me the same level of satisfaction. The characters were not as accessible and as much as I loved the understated romance and the slow burning relationship between Christopher and Sarah I found that it was almost too muted.

As ever, the scene is set extremely well. The vista of war torn Shanghai with its abandoned, destructed buildings and winding never ending tiny streets certainly conveys a sense of claustrophobia that is felt in the second half of the novel when Christopher is taken on a destructive journey and a complete fall from reality. This works well in comparison to the rigid, contained world of the English gentry.The novel leads you from a happy existence as a child in Shanghai, to 1930s London full of evening balls and dinner parties to a state of complete confusion and nonsense led to by obsession. Ishiguro's description never fails throughout the novel, but at times, the narrative does let it down.

At its heart this is a story of childhood innocence, the struggle to come to terms with past trauma and the need to let go and live life. The delusional and detached nature of the narrator certainly adds to the strength of the voice but also means the writing is not as accessible to the reader, especially towards the end of the novel.