So a couple days ago in the mail I got this promotional calendar for Disney’s Underdog, slated for release August 3, and it elicited a deep sigh. Really? This is what we’ve come to? (Mostly crappy) remakes of every television serial of yesteryear aren’t good enough by themselves, apparently; we also need live action soiling of cartoon properties. I mean, I know the Air Bud franchise has done quite well, but is the name recognition value of Underdog going to help drive this ostensibly like-minded property? Why not just call it Caped Canine or something?
Promising “state-of-the-art CGI visual effects mixed with live action to create stunning visuals,” the film stars Jim Belushi (of course), Peter Dinklage, John Slattery, Patrick Warburton and Brad Garrett, with Jason Lee providing the titular mutt’s voice and Amy Adams voicing his putative love interest, a spaniel named Polly Purebread. And in case you were wondering, yes, there’s a maniacal scientist. It’s an accident in his lab that graces our ordinary beagle with unimaginable powers and the ability to speak. Finally… Underdog’s backstory revealed! Whatever…
Without seeing a frame, I can tell you that this movie is indicative of Hollywood’s backwards-plotted thinking with regards to production. They’d rather churn out almost exclusively carbon copies of previous fare — preferably with some sort of franchise attachment to a videogame or TV show or book, no matter how old, forgotten or cultishly niche said product was in the first place. Because no one really puts their name or reputation on the line for those movies, for movies like Underdog; there’s plausible deniability if it fails, and no shortage of credit if it succeeds. Ergo, no Hollywood suit ever really loses their job, because there aren’t any tough decisions in making these films. In fact, looking at the adventuresome, heroically lit photos of a blank-faced Underdog soaring past international landmarks in this calendar, you almost get the feeling that someone just forgot to say no to this film. And yes, yes, I know it’s “just” a kids’ flick, but still… c’mon.
