Dollar Tree Cinema: Stardog and Turbocat

 

“Stardog and Turbocat” (2019)
Starring Luke Evans, Nick Frost, Gemma Arteton, Bill Nighy, Charli D'Amelio
Written and Directed by Ben Smith
Rated PG for rude material/language and some mild action

I came away from watching “Stardog and Turbocat” with one burning question: Do the British pronounce “capsule” different than Americans? Or maybe two: Have I been pronouncing “capsule” incorrectly all my life?

I say “kap-suhl.” But multiple characters in this animated movie about a dog who gets stranded in space for 50 years and then, wouldn't you know it, returns to a small town where pets have been outlawed and a Batman-like cat patrols the streets say “kap-shule” or “kap-suel.” When David, the lead, or perhaps only, scientist on the rocket launch first said it, I thought he had a speech impediment.

Maybe it's a result of British actors doing American accents? I saw Nick Frost's name on the box and, after reminding myself that he is allowed to do movies without Simon Pegg, kept wondering who he was voicing. Turns out it was Buddy, aka Stardog. And Evans – who if I'm being honest I know more from a clickbait article where someone rendered him as Namor than the live-action “Beauty and the Beast” or various “Fast and/or Furious” movies – is the equally un-British Turbocat, aka Felix.

I'm going to try to set the capsule/capshule/capsuell thing aside before this qualifies for #StuckInAMoment status because I did have other thoughts about this movie. I picked it up at Dollar Tree because of the familiar names in the cast and the superhero trappings. I watched it with my youngest after the oldest bowed out, having seen a preview and deciding not to watch because she thought she'd find the part about people not liking dogs and cats sad. She gets this from me. I didn't like to see people being unkind to innocent animals as a kid. Although my heart has hardened somewhat over the years, I could still see where it would have tugged the strings of hers and, once upon a time, mine as well.

After being launched into space and having his caps- small spacecraft malfunction, Buddy wakes up in a dumpster in the town of Glenfield, where people are shocked and appalled to see a dog wandering the streets. He narrowly escapes getting thrown in the pound by Peck, the town's only cop, who has waged some sort of crusade against pets as being filthy and dangerous. Resisting him are Turbocat, a feline who appreciates capes and gadgets, and the animals of G.U.A.R.D., an acronym I don't think they ever explained.

Buddy is convinced his owner David will come to find him. Felix is skeptical, having been a stray all his life. Meanwhile, Cassidy, a former magician's rabbit and the unrequited object of Felix's affection, and the G.U.A.R.D. crew want to use the hyperlithium that powered Buddy's cap... sized spacecraft to fight back against Peck and his anti-animal agenda. And it's not just a fuel source, as it seems to be the reason Buddy returned to Earth with powers like super speed and strength.

The animation's fine and there are funny moments, such as Felix/Turbocat's constantly malfunctioning equipment or the revelation of the source of his Bruce Wayne-like fortune. There are also some sweet bits and nice payoffs. But the parts of this movie just didn't fit very well together.

First you have the scale, with a rocket launch that appears to be primarily driven by one guy and his test animals/pets. Then, there's Glenfield, which seems tiny and desolate, even for a small town. Its human population seems to number a dozen or so. Knowing little about the finer details of producing computer-animated films, I'm guessing it would have been more complex and therefore more expensive to render a bigger or more populated town?

Maybe I'm being a little too stubborn about suspending my disbelief, but despite being a movie about talking animals, some of whom moonlight as superheroes, it feels like this wanted to be a little more grounded in reality. The humans can't understand the animals talking... but they can see them walking on two legs, dressing in human-like clothing, having opposable thumbs, etc. I'm not sure what the level of reality in-film was supposed to be.

The juxtaposition of superhero pets and an almost post-apocalyptic setup (“He returned to an Earth where pets were outlawed”) was intriguingly weird at first, but it felt like they were just jumping back and forth between those elements, not weaving them together.

Look, I'm rolling my eyes at myself a little here. It's a movie called “Stardog and Turbocat.” It's not a classic piece of animation that transcends its raw materials and speaks to people of all ages. But I asked my 7-year-old what she thought and her answer was: “I loved it.”

I was also amused by a bit of a role reversal as the credits rolled and I got to see who voiced whom. After telling her I recognized Evans, Frost, Arteton and Nighy, we came to a name I didn't know but she did: Charli D'Amelio, who apparently is a TikTok-ing, online personality.* Her acting debut as the voice of the quiet mouse Tinker was what appeared to generate the most press about this movie.

All in all, I was amused and a bit confused, and the youngster was entertained. Not bad for $1.25.

* - News flash: I am old.