The Garfield Movie Review
My parents will say this never happened, but I say otherwise: one of my earliest memories was me watching reruns of Garfield and Friends on TV. However, It wasn’t until I hit elementary school and saw a volume of Garfield that I realized that, yes, the cat was real and not something I imagined. From that moment on, I was a Garfield fan.
I did it all. I read the books in libraries (and sacrificed social interaction in the process). I watched the shows and specials wherever I could find them (thank you, YouTube). Heck, when we adopted two cats, I convinced my family to name one Nermal. I was obsessed with Garfield, and while I don’t read his strip anymore, I still have fond memories of that fat cat. So when I heard that Sony and Columbia were making a new Garfield movie, I knew I had to see it.
Having seen it, this is my reaction: meh. I’ve seen better.
Is this Really a Garfield Movie?
In this iteration of the world’s most famous cat, Garfield is living large and in charge. Until the day that he and Odie get kidnapped by a deranged Persian cat, that is, and gets rescued by his estranged, never-before-seen father, Vic. The next thing he knows, he’s being forced to take part in this crazy heist at a dairy farm. And all Garfield wants to know is if this is taking place on a Monday.
All I want to know: are we sure this is a Garfield film?
As a character, Garfield was designed by creator Jim Davis to be highly marketable. Judging by the TV shows, specials, and ridiculous amount of merchandise, Garfield has succeeded by a wide margin. However, the one area where the famous feline has always seemed to struggle with has been movies. The Bill Murray films were financially successful, but divisive among fans. Bill even jokingly admitted that he signed up for them by accident. The direct-to-DVD trilogy from 2007-2009 didn’t do much better with critics either. And so far, The Garfield Movie isn’t doing great with critics.
Every Garfield Movie Made Hasn’t Done So Hot
In its defense, the film does make an effort to feel like a Garfield film. The film has a few easter eggs and references to Garfield’s long history, like Mama Leoni’s, Binky the clown, and those famous stuck-on-you car plushies that were all the rage in the 80s and 90s. And the giant parade float that appears at every Thanksgiving day parade.
However, the parts of the story that feel like something out of Garfield are few and far between. And, despite me not wanting to believe the other reviews, much of it is confined to the opening act. And not helping matters is how most of the strip’s cast, besides Odie (who is incredibly competent here), barely has any involvement in anything. That’s not good!
Chris Pratt: Great Actor, but Not Good Fit for Garfield
Then, we have the elephant in the room: the voice acting.
Several people have played Garfield over the years, but there are two standouts. The first is the GOAT, Lorenzo Music, who sadly passed away in 2001. Since 2007, though, Garfield has been voiced by the equally legendary Frank Welker, who’s kept the precedent for dry tone and wit that Music set alive. Yet the film chooses, of all people, Chris Pratt to play the famous cat.
Chris Pratt is a good actor, and I’ve been a fan of him for ten years now. And to his credit, both the film’s director and Garfield creator Jim Davis approved of him playing the fat cat. On the other hand, fans and critics don’t seem to like him as Garfield. And I’m one of them. Chris Pratt is too energetic and upbeat-sounding to effectively play a character that’s well-known for being lazy and sarcastic with a dry sense of wit. Maybe Director Mark Dindal was hoping to give us a new spin on the old cat and appeal to younger audiences better. However, it feels like this decision might have backfired on him and Jim.
Could’ve Been Worse
In all fairness, The Garfield Movie isn’t a total Monday. The animation is clean, bright, and colorful. And when the film wants to, it can do a good job of capturing the lazy and sarcastic nature that makes Garfield so popular. And I did enjoy how they made Odie the hyper-competent sidekick to Garfield. If Mark Dindal was hoping to give kids an introduction to Garfield, then he succeeded. However, if he wanted to entertain the adults who grew up reading the strip, the books, and watching the shows, he fell flat. I hate to admit it, but this might be one movie that could be worth sleeping through. Which, ironically, is exactly what Garfield would do.
It’s not the end of the world, though. We still have Garfield and Friends, The Garfield Show, and the strip itself. No shortage of good content to make up for the bad.
