MOVIE NIGHT TRAFFIC LIGHT

Walt Disney / Boxing Cat Films (Distributor: Buena Vista Pictures)

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Brian Robbins (Varsity Blues, Radio, Hard Ball)

Tim Allen (Home Improvement, Santa Clause 3), David Hoberman (Eight Below, Beauty Shop, Raising Helen, The Negotiator)

Cormac Wibberley (National Treasure, Charlie’s Angles: Full Throttle),Marianne Wibberley (National Treasure, Charlie’s Angles: Full Throttle , Geoff Rodkey (Daddy Day Care), Jack Amiel (Raising Helen, The Prince and Me), Michael Bigler (Raising Helen, The Prince and Me)

Tim Allen – Dave Douglas (Home Improvement, Santa Clause, Christmas with the Kranks, Toy Story)

Kristin Davis – Rebecca Douglas (The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl, Sex in the City)

Robert Downey Jr. – Marcus Kozak (Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Good Night and Good Luck, Ally McBeal)

Danny Glover – D.A. Ken Hollister (Lethal Weapon, Saw)

With The Shaggy Dog, Tim Allen undoubtedly becomes the new undisputed king of Disney films.  But, as far as we’re concerned, Mickey Mouse is still the better actor!

 The Shaggy Dog has a similar concept to the original The Shaggy Dog and The Shaggy DA, but has a bit of a different story line.  In this version, legend has it that somewhere in Tibet lives a sheepdog that has been alive for more than 300 years.  A crazy scientist (Robert Downey Jr.) snatches the dog and brings him to his lab in the U.S. to test him and discover the secret to the fountain of youth.  The dog escapes and ends up with Dave Dougless (Tim Allen) and his family who just happens to be prosecuting the guy who set fire to the crazy scientist’s office building.  When Dave is less than enthusiastic about having the dog live with them, the dog bites him and runs away.  The bite sets off a change in Dave that first makes him act like a dog and then actually turns him into a sheepdog.  While a dog, he learns that he has lost touch with his family and that the crazy doctor is conducting medical experiments on animals and has to be stopped.  While dealing with transforming between dog and lawyer, Dave tries to reconnect with his family, expose the truth about the crazy doctor and rescue the captive animals.

Been there, done that.  Though they’ve done a good job of updating the story and adding some nice special effects, the movie’s strength is the same as it was in the original films – the novelty of the “man becomes dog” concept.  If you watched the originals, this version is too similar to really be a new experience, and yet not similar enough to allow you to relive your childhood experience.  Previous versions aside, however, it’s actually a decent film.  Like in most of his movies, Tim Allen’s acting is somewhat cartoonish and ingenuous, but his physical comedy – his half man/ half dog stuff - was fairly precise and entertaining.  And, Robert Downey Jr. was magnificent, as usual.  Plus, the movie does have some fairly funny scenes toward the end.  So, children - and those that were deprived of the original as children - might enjoy this new and very slightly improved Shaggy Dog episode.

On the Movie Night Traffic Light on a scale of GREEN meaning “Go – it’s a must see”, YELLOW meaning “Caution – it’s okay” and RED meaning “No - stop don’t do it."

We rate Shaggy Dog YELLOW.  Caution – This movie isn’t great, but has some cute and entertaining moments.