Teacher's Pet

Nathan Lane voices a little blue dog who dresses up as a boy so he can go to school in this, the latest big screen version of a Disney Channel animated series (like their wonderful "Recess" film... uh, never mind...). The voice cast also boasts Jerry Stiller (in full-on shout mode, God bless him) and David Ogden Stiers (in perhaps his funniest voice performance). This one works as a witty and daring stylistic departure from Disney norm, perhaps outdoing even the much lauded "Lilo and Stitch" in that regard. Visual gags abound, taking several stylized shots at fellow "Disney icons" (i.e., Pinocchio, the Seven Dwarfs). In the big film story, Spot a.k.a. Scot follows his master and his master's clueless mom to Florida in his search for a mad scientist (voice of Kelsey Grammar) who has been trying to transform animals into people. Yup, that's right. He's no longer just going to dress the part. He's getting the operation! And transsexual/ gay subtexting? Fuhgeddaboutit.

I personally feel the the Teacher's Pet to me is film of the year. It is bright, funny, musical, and very different from the normal Disney we usually see. I have been a fan of the TV series ever since 2002 and when I saw that there was a movie coming out I thought I had died and gone to heaven, and it turned out the movie was exactly what I thought it would be (Very Entertaining). Sure the animation was strange, but thats the way Gary Baseman draws, what where you expecting? The music is very unique and many of the songs are quite toe-tapers. The voices are one of the best parts of the whole movie, Nathan Lane really does an awesome job as Spot, Scott Leadready, Scott "Manly" Manning. Also, the jokes are not stupid, they are very comical, sure they are not Adam Sandler type jokes but they are very funny none the less. Personally, I would take Teacher's Pet over any of those other movies that came out around that time Barbershop II, Calendar Girl, Along Came Polly etc. If you ask me the money that a movie brings in doesn't make the movie great it is how much a person enjoyed the movie that makes it great. I have seen this movie about five times so far and play to buy it the day it comes out on DVD just because it is so enjoyable. I hope to hear many other good reports for Teacher's Pet in the future.

If you like your animation over-the-top and the jokes at a breakneck pace, then this one's for you. Nathan Lane does a great job as Spot the dog who wants to be a boy, along with fellow voices Kelsey Grammar, Paul Ruebens and Jerry Stiller.

The animation is unusual (imagine the drawings on the board game Cranium coming to life), but a nice break from the perfect Pixar flicks. The songs leave something to be desired, but most are brief and then its back to the jokes.

A nice alternative to the standard Disney output: 7 out of 10.

The term "family film" really gets me angry. Why? Because for every film that is out there that is good enough to be for the entire family, there are at least 50 others that are not only wasting their parent's time, but they are not respecting their intended audience. Disney's new animated film TEACHER'S PET is both patronizing and extremely sloppy.

Spot Helperman(Voiced by Nathan Lane, The Lion King) is a dog who longs to be a real boy. He dresses up like a little boy and goes to school with his master Leonard (Shaun Fleming, Jeepers Creepers 2), and for some odd reason Leonard's mother (Debra Joy Rupp, TV's That 70's Show) is their teacher. When Leonard's mother wins a trip to Florida, Leonard longs to have fun on the beach with his dog. Spot wants to go to Florida to meet a wacko doctor (Kelsey Grammer) who can turn animals into humans.

As I sat through this supposed "musical comedy" I asked myself, Why? Who in their right mind said this film was worthy enough to make? Who said "hey the script is ready, let's make this movie?" The simple answer is money. But let's be honest, this turkey is not going to make any money. This is not the film that is going to be locked in the Disney Vault for ten years, to be released with much fanfare.

This is a shoddy movie that aspires to be HEY ARNOLD, THE MOVIE. Its script is not technically a story, it is bad jokes designed to stretch running time. TEACHER'S PET is a 15 minute animated short with over an hour of bad jokes designed to stretch the running time.

Most would probably say, "why are you being so hard on this movie? It's designed for little kids not a 24 year old male." I say if you are going to spend large amounts of money on a film and you expect parents to bring their little tykes, and you create a film that makes even a toddler bored, I cannot go easy on it.

This film has no charm. The jokes are too abrasive, and there are far too many things going on. It also features this really odd subplot involving Spot and Leonard's mother that made me feel really, really uncomfortable. Its inclusion was both unnecessary and hard to explain without making it sound sicker than it really is.

Finally I muse about the PG rating for this film. Why? It will play well only to four or five year olds. When I think of a PG movie I think of kids between 8-10. Why create a film geared at toddlers and market it to seven-year olds? You got me. I don't know why this film is PG. It contains no bad language, no sex, and no real violence. It's not even scary. If anyone can figure this out, I will give you a hearty handshake.

If you are looking to waste a child's time, stay at home and rent ET. They'll love it. TEACHER'S PET on the other hand is a vapid mess. If you want my advice, instead of dropping forty bucks to take the brood to see this film, spend that money on a really big cardboard box. Your kids will have far more fun with that.

This movie was hard to watch, and gave me a stomach ache. The fast moving visuals & dialogue, combined with the over the top eccentricity of plot line, made me glad for only one thing: that it was a short film.