September 14, 2023
Doug (Will Forte) was a lowlife bum and drug addict who mistreated his dog, a Border Terrier. His girlfriend Ashley (Jade Hernandez) named the dog Reggie when she adopted him. When they separated, Doug held on to Reggie to annoy Ashley, and proceeded to abuse the poor dog anyway. Despite all this neglect from his master, Reggie thought Doug really loved him and kept on wanting to play with him, even if Doug didn't really like to.
One day, fed up Doug drove 3 hours out of town to abandon Reggie. Lost and confused, Reggie met a stray Boston Terrier named Bug (Jamie Foxx), who later introduced him to his friends, an Australian Shepherd named Maggie (Isla Fisher) and a therapy Great Dane wearing a cone, named Hunter (Randall Park). As the dogs shared stories, Reggie realized he's been abused all this time and resolved to go home so he can bite Doug's d**k off.
This was basically about the adventures and misadventures of four dogs going on a road trip to look for three landmarks that Reggie remembered cryptically as "a giant hamster wheel without a hamster," "a giant cone" and "the devil in the sky" en route to Doug's house in Oakwood. This actually could have a fun and funny film for dog-lovers of all ages, but that is NOT what writer Dan Perrault and director Josh Greenbaum had in mind.
From the first moment Doug was introduced, we readily see his vulgar habits and hear his foul mouth spew profanities. When Reggie met Dug, his new street-smart BFF also had a curse word and sexual reference in practically every sentence. This off-color, gross-out and raunchy comedy of the green and brown kind was right up the lane of "The Hangover" and "Bridesmaids" and its ilk, definitely not for kids.
The gags regarding the dogs humping everything including Dolores the Couch (Sofia Vergara), peeing on each other, and the mutiny of the poop at the pound were pretty much par for the course for doggie-style comedy. The involvement of a hawk added a dash of over-the-top excitement. However, the filmmakers went too far beyond the limits of poor taste in that bizarre hallucinogen mushroom-induced episode with the ripped-up stuffed toys.
Writer Perrault did very well thinking and speaking from a dog's point of view. The talented A-list voice actors all gave their dogs delightful personalities, particularly Ferrell and Foxx. The comedy can be raucous, but there were also some pretty heartwarming moments. In those scenes showing Reggie's pure loyalty and unconditional love for his master, dog-owners will definitely reflect on their own dogs and love them even more. 6/10.
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