A young girl’s love for a tiny puppy named Clifford makes the dog grow to an enormous size.
“Clifford the Big Red Dog” is based on the American children’s book series by the late Norman Bridwell. Clifford, much like his big-screen counterpart Buck, a large, gentle Saint Bernard and Scotch Shepherd from “The Call of the Wild,” another big-screen adaptation from a book by Jack London, share one unique attribute; they are both CGI. A lot of people were put off by Buck’s “fake” appearance but I fully enjoyed that film, and much like “Clifford,” if you can get past the CGI presentation, then you’re bound to have fun with the extra-large canine and his human companions.
Emily Elizabeth Howard (Darby Camp) attends an upper-class middle school in Manhattan and finds herself bullied on a daily basis. When her mother Maggie (Sienna Guillory) has to go out of town for a few days for work-related commitments, she calls on her brother Casey (Jack Whitehall) to step in and watch over Emily. On the way to school one morning, Emily and Casey come across an animal rescue tent at a carnival, owned by the eccentric Mr. Bridwell (John Cleese), and upon entering the pavilion, he immediately introduces her to Clifford, a small red dog who immediately steals her heart. She begs her Uncle Casey to take the dog home but he refuses, stating the apartment she and her mother live in does not allow pets. Brokenhearted, she leaves but upon arriving home later that evening, she mysteriously discovers Clifford in her backpack. She tries to hide him from Casey but he finds Clifford and threatens to get rid of him. Seeing Emily’s sad face, he agrees to let Clifford stay for one night but when Emily and Casey arise the next morning, they are shocked to find he has grown to at least 25 feet, all because of Emily’s pure love for him.
They take him to a local vet to determine that he is physically in good health but along the way, he captures the attention of New Yorkers everywhere, and pretty soon they are all over the news. Zac Tieran (Tony Hale), the owner of a biotechnology company named Lyfegro, sees Emily, Casey, and Clifford on the news and sets out with a nefarious plan to capture Clifford to help him with his illegal animal experimentations. Tieran concocts a plan to prove to the authorities that Clifford is actually his company’s property and is known to be very aggressive and recently escaped from Lyfegro. This is all the police need in order to allow Tieran to take possession of Clifford but Emily and Casey and their neighbors help break him out and with the police and Lyfegro on their tails, they must find Mr. Bridwell, in the hopes he can help them understand Clifford’s unnatural size before he is taken away from them.
“Clifford the Big Red Dog” addresses the culture of bullying, and does so in a way that is not pandering to the young audience the film is obviously aimed at. It approaches the subject manner in such a way that younger children who may be victims of aggressive bullying, whether it be in person or through social media, can respond positively and know that if Clifford, the big red dog, can help Emily overcome bullies at her school, and also the antagonizers at Lyfegro, then he can help young children do the same in their own lives. For me as a kid, Indiana Jones was always my hero, and whenever I found myself in a situation I was uncomfortable with, I would think of Indy and immediately I would feel better so if Indiana Jones could work for me, then maybe Clifford can work for his young audience. Thankfully, Darby Camp does not come across as some mischievous and incorrigible kid, she is natural and convincing in her role as Emily and is wholly relatable to the young audience the film is designed for. Jack Whitehall, Sienna Guillory, and John Cleese, between them all, infuse enough laughter, tenderheartedness, and mischievousness to help bring the movie to a clichéd yet gratifying happily ever after.
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