FAMILY MOVIE REVIEWS

by Bonnie L. Harris

Dog Smart

Lionsgate Rated: PG Streaming on Amazon

As the summer movie season wraps up and Hollywood delays more anticipated features, it’s getting harder to find new family films worth watching. If you missed Think Like a Dog, starring Gabriel Bateman and Josh Duhamel, now’s a good time to catch up. It’s a sweet and silly fantasy about a geeky kid, his outspoken dog, and a wacky invention that land them both in a dog pile of trouble. Despite the fart jokes, poopy giggles, and a discussion about sniffing doggie butts, it’s actually a fun romp with a canine narrator named Henry who judges life honestly. Unfortunately for his teenage human named Ollie, life is more complicated because his parents are separating, he’s bullied by peers , and he ’s afraid to ask a pretty girl named Sophie to the school dance. When Ollie invents a machine that can hear someone’s thoughts, he accidentally starts a dangerous chain reaction that involves a billionaire developer and the Global Cyber Protection Agency. Instead of capturing h u m a n t h o u g h t s , O l l i e ’s invention captures Henry’s canine thoughts and the two friends hatch a plan to reunite Ollie’s parents. Meanwhile, the

billionaire developer pretends to be a friend, but he’s really p l a n n i n g to s te a l O l l i e ’s invention, and GCP Agents track a huge security breach coming from Ollie’s house. Although Henry teaches Ollie how to honestly talk to girls, Ollie takes it a step further and speaks honestly to his teachers and parents. That lands him in hot water, but earns the respect of Sophie and the kids at school. Suddenly, Ollie and Henry are kidnapped by the billionaire, but Henr y manages to escape and rounds up his canine friends to pull off a daring rescue. The film’s ending is happy, but a little far-fetched. Woof! So pass the popcorn and have fun thinking like a dog.

FOR THE PARENTS

Love of Music

The High Note

Focus Features, Rated: PG-13 Streaming on Amazon

Here’s another of those small, feel-good movies that didn’t get much fanfare when it launched on Amazon, but The High Note makes up for a slow start with great music, memorable characters, and a heartfelt story about finding your true calling. Maggie Sherwoode dreams of producing music while she slaves as a personal assistant to pop diva Grace Davis. Although Maggie urges Grace to record a new album, Grace prefers the security of a well-paid Las Vegas resident show. At night, Maggie recuts Grace’s old tracks and discovers a young singer named David, who she convinces she’s a real music producer.

Maggie discovers David.

Together they create a fantastic album, but David suffers from a lack of confidence and he refuses to perform at a live show Maggie arranges. She loses her assistant job and returns home only to realize that producing music is the thing she loves best. Surprisingly, Grace and David track Maggie down, and their three-way meeting turns into a crazy narrative twist that I never saw coming. Grace admits she not retiring and she offers Maggie her dream job. The film ends on a definite high note back in the recording studio with Grace at the mic and Maggie at the controls.