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A terrier named Max regularly invites his friends to hang out at his place while his owner is gone, but his quiet life is upended when said owner also takes in Duke, a stray mutt whom Max instantly dislikes.
For their fifth fully-animated feature-film collaboration, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures present “The Secret Life of Pets,” a comedy that follows the lives of our beloved furry friends when we’re not home. The plot centers on Max, a pampered terrier whose routine is soon disrupted when Duke, a stray mutt whom Max instantly dislikes, joins the family as his brother. Unsurprisingly, it doesn’t take long for the dubious duo to land in trouble, with their rivalry sending them adrift in New York City. Now the mismatched mutts must join forces to escape the clutches of both Animal Control and an underground army of abandoned pets led by an adorable, yet slightly unhinged, bunny named Snowball.
The script for “The Secret Life of Pets” was written by Brian Lynch (“Minions”) and “Despicable Me” writers Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. Yarrow Cheney makes his directorial debut after serving as a production designer on “Despicable Me,” alongside co-director Chris Renaud (“Despicable Me 1 & 2,” “Minions”), who recently teamed up with producer Chris Meledandi (“Despicable Me 1 & 2,” “Minions”) to discuss the film’s premise in an all-new featurette.
The formula may be familiar, but the characters are fresh and completely won my heart. The screening was uncharacteristicly early. At 9am I found myself driving into Dallas with my 9 year-old, her best friend and my husband to review “The Secret Life of Pets.” For it being a Saturday morning during summer break, there is normally only one 9 O’clock in my schedule – and it’s rarely ever followed by a.m. I was excited and eager to see the show, but found myself thinking that the studio reps should have offered a coffee bar to the reviewers along side the games they were playing with the kids before the show.
My amazing husband settled the kids into their seats, dolled out popcorn, drinks and candy – a rare treat at before mentioned early hour of the day. The kids, and I must admit I, were a bit giggly and bouncy as the lights went down and the new Minion short feature started off our Saturday morning movie adventure. By the time the movie started, we were all laughing to the point of tears.
Within minutes, it was very clear that the writers, producers and actors had sent out into the world an amazing heart warming and absolutely brilliant piece of work. Although many might consider it a “kids movie” because of the animation style and story line, “The Secret Life of Pets” is a must-see for anyone who loves animals and appreciates a good laugh.
In theaters July 8th
