Bill Diehl Reviews 'See Spot Run'
March 1 -- ABCNEWS Radio entertainment correspondent Bill Diehl gives us his opinion of See Spot Run. His rating is based on a four-star system.
Rating: **
Man's best friend is back on the big screen again in a silly but often amusing and kid-friendly comedy. See Spot Run stars David Arquette as Gordon Smith, a mailman who is quite adept at outsmarting the dogs on his route that try to take a bite out of him.
Gordon has more than just those dogs to worry about. He's baby-sitting James (Angus T. Jones), the young son of his attractive neighbor, Stephanie (Leslie Bibb of the WB's Popular). Then there's Agent Eleven (played by a bull mastiff named Bob), a law enforcement pooch who runs afoul of Mafia leader Sonny (Paul Sorvino). Sonny puts out a contract on the canine for interfering with his deals one too many times, so the FBI decides to send Agent Eleven off to Alaska for his own safety.
But Agent Eleven isn't one to sit around very long. He escapes from his FBI handlers, and pops up in Gordon's mail truck. Look out — a couple of Sonny's goons are on the prowl with orders to whack the dog. Hilarious, slapstick antics ensue as the FBI's Murdoch (Michael Clarke Duncan) and Sonny's boys are both in hot pursuit of Agent Eleven.
Kids will especially love a scene in a toy store where everything goes haywire and another where Gordon slips in a pile of dog doo. This is the kind of movie that most critics will trash but young kids will love, because they get to see grown-ups in embarrassing situations. With little out there right now that is PG, it will find an audience. (Since it's a PG film, some material may not be suitable for small children.)
There are no great messages here and yes, it's over the top, but kids at my screening seemed to get it. While adults will cringe at some of the antics, it's all pretty harmless.
Poor Michael Clarke Duncan. "My first screen kiss," he says "and it has to be with a dog." David Arquette (who is also currently seen in the awful 3000 Miles to Graceland) comes off OK in this one. And he works well with the kid, Angus T. Jones, making his major motion picture debut.
