Credit: www.impawards.com
Director:
Butch Hartman
Featuring the voices of:
Daniel Tay……….Doogal
Jimmy Fallon……….Dylan
Jon Stewart………..Zeebad
Whoopi Goldberg……….Ermintrude
William H. Macy……….Brian
Chevy Chase……….The Train
Bill Hader……….Soldier Sam
Ian McKellen……….Zebedee
Kylie Minogue……….Florence
Judi Dench……….Narrator
Kevin Smith……….Moose
The Weinstein Company presents Doogal. Written by Serge Danot, Tad Saffran, Paul Bassett and Raolf and Stephane Sanoussi. Running time: 85 minutes. Rated G.
A common trend for movie studios is to not screen certain features for critics. So far the first two months of 2006 has seen more movies released without critic approval/disapproval than all of last year. Why? Apparently, there is a price to be paid. When a studio has a bad movie on its hands it would rather release it into theaters without being screened. That way they don’t have to pay thousands of dollars to have critics watch their movie and write how bad it is. The executives already know how bad it is. But, realistically, people will see a movie bad review or not.
Such is the case with Doogal, the second animated venture by The Weinstein Company. Lost in the shuffle at the end of February, this animated movie is geared towards children, especially those under the age of 8. Based on the popular British TV series “The Magic Roundabout”, the Weinsteins purchased this film in hopes it would do Hoodwinked-like business.
The protagonist is a shaggy dog that is in need of a trim. If Charlie had a dog in his chocolate factory, it would be this dog. He just loves candy. Doogal (voiced by Daniel Tay) is a bit of a troublemaker and accident-prone. He lives in a magical place alongside Florence, the young girl who takes care of him. When he isn’t trying to come up with ways to steal sweets from a traveling vendor, he hangs out with his talking animal friends, a cow named Ermintrude (Whoopi Goldberg) and the snail that loves her, Brian (William H. Macy).
The carousel located in the center of town is a prison of sorts, housing a baddy named Zeebad. Now Zeebad is a character with a head, a torso, and a single spring. The town’s good wizard Zebedee – again another spring with a head – was the one who apprehended him the first time. Due to his ineptitude, it is Doogal who accidentally frees Zeebad. It is an action that ultimately sets into motion the chain of events that will turn his brightly colored homeland into a winter wonderland…forever.
The only way to reverse the ice age is to search the surrounding hills and volcanic caverns and collect three magical diamonds. This is the goal, and Doogal, with his team of friends and a magical train, goes on an adventure to save the day. Thankfully, there are no ROUS’s (Rodents of Unusual Size) to worry about.
There are certain scenes that seem like deju vu. Like the gang attempting to cross a river of lava by walking on a narrow rock overpass. If that wasn’t a hint, how about one of the characters mimicking Gollum from Lord of the Rings; he calls one of the diamonds “my precious.”
Despite the amazing vocal cast (including Jon Stewart and Ian McKellen), the movie is wishy-washy in terms of plot. There is no connection between Doogal and his friends. Granted, it is not for adults. But the least we could ask for is believable, outgoing animated characters. Doogal is the weakest in a group that has a bunny rabbit channeling Jeff Spicoli, a good-natured snail and a opera-singing heifer.
As the second animated movie under the Weinstein Company flagship, Doogal is a better-looking film visually. The problem is audience demographic. Appealing to youngsters is a good way to make money, because parents have to buy a ticket too. Children will watch and laugh for 90 minutes. Parents will be mildly amused by references to Pulp Fiction, The Matrix, and other movies of pop culture notoriety.
Since this shaggy dog is geared towards children, they shouldn’t be concerned about a cow and snail in love. It happens. Granted, I, myself, may wonder about the feelings these two would have for each other, but it’s a “what if scenario”. Kind of like, “what if Mrs. Potato Head gave birth to a Cabbage Patch Kid? Would Mr. Potato Head turn her into French fries?” (That’s another story for another time.)
