Hubert, son altesse caninissime

"The Duke" is a film based in the heart of the British aristocracy where an old Duke (John Neville) dies and to avoid his large property and the vast riches to be taken from him after death by 2 devious aristocrats (Oliver Muirhead and Sophie Heyman); he passes his Dukeship down to his dog. The dog's "best friend", an American girl named Charlotte (played by Courtnee Draper) whose parents die becomes orphaned by the former Duke due to him being her great uncle. A young chef named Florian arrives, with him and Charlotte instantly connecting creating a romantic sub-plot which in its own way, acts as the under tone for the main plot line being the activities of Hubert, The 'Duke' and his many activities and love interests with other dogs. All this is watched over by James Doohan who plays a Butler who is determined to try and serve his old Duke by doing his best to serve his new master, Hubert. Doohan acts as the older character there to comfort and advise the younger ones whilst he over looks and performs various ridiculous tasks under his new master. A fine comedic performance mixed with elements of drama to end the career of a fine and influential actor.

Though from the technical viewpoint, I dislike this film as I only watched upon discovering James Doohan's role. Though the plot is good, elements of the writing and directing have to be obscured. Ignoring the absurdity of a "Doggie Duke", I personally dislike the over use of comedic and outrageous jokes upon the 'bad' characters due to their ludicrousness. The dependence on hygiene related humour as you like is much too apparent and general silliness of many characters doesn't appeal to me. The director, Phillip Spink uses mid-long shots too often with either an overdubbed voice or affecting the overall sound quality. Plus, the acting of Muirhead and Heyman, whilst good at the dramatic and romantic sequences, fall drastically short fulfilling the wholesale requirements regarding the role.

But, as a mature movie fan, I find it easy to be over critical of a simple family film designed to make you laugh. I can admit I found certain bits funny and other bits touching along with a plot that may be far-fetched, but has definite connections. I do not recommend this film to mature movie fans but I do highly recommend it to Dog lovers, families who wish to enjoy a funny film for their child and James Doohan fans who wish to see 'Scotty' in his final role.

In Olde England, there is an aging Duke. His beloved wife is deceased and his closest relatives are snooty grifters. Therefore, his dearest friends are a grand-niece and a beloved dog. He is blessed with a most loyal butler, too (James Doohan). One day, when he and his niece are out riding horses, the Duke suffers what may be a heart attack and goes home to bed, never getting up again. As he lays dying, he makes a new will to leave most everything to his dog, with his niece as the caretaker. After the funeral, all interested parties show up for the reading of the last will and testament. The grifters, already gleeful at their anticipated inheritance and titles, give the staff pink ships and lock the dog in the attic, for he annoys them. But, ha ha! Duke breaks out of the upstairs and arrives just in time to hear of his own rise to aristocracy! Advantage, doggie! The niece is delighted as well, for she loves the dog, now named The Duke. She has a new admirer, too, a lad who comes to work in the kitchen. But, as one might guess, the dastardly disinheritors comb the laws of royalty to find loopholes. At first, they discover the new duke must have a ball and gain the queen's approval to get the title. Foiled again! The niece hires an etiquette expert, the Duke learns how to act in high society, and the queen boogies at the ball before bestowing the title. But, as this Canine Royal has long had an affection for another dog named Daisy, the grifters decide to entice Duke with a spiffy poodle, ending in "dog marriage", so that they can control the Duke's little fiefdom. Will they succeed at last? This darling bit of silliness is greatly enjoyable. Most families will love the story, cast, settings, costumes, and beloved canines. What a stitch to see dogs join a conga line and wear fancy dress. In fact, the dog playing Duke is one talented pooch. So, this Duke's no fluke, seek it out soon.

I didn't hate it but the plot was so stupid. It was about a dog who became king after the king named him heir! How does that even work! I watched this with my Grandma who loves dog movies. It's more for these people than me. If that's you, enjoy. if not, there's better movies you could be watching instead.

Friends, beware. This movie is bad. Really bad. Like there are no ways in which this film is not bad. Where shall I begin?

Perhaps the camera work? To put it bluntly, the whole movie seems as if it were filmed by a cheap Dollar Tree Kodak smashed to the wall with a piece of moist bubble gum. I got a crick in my neck trying to understand the bizarre angles that these directors evidently thought were "artistic." The acting? Horrific. What back alley did they scour to find these wretched excuses for thespians? If any one of them found a penny on their way to the set, they'd be grossly overpaid. The plot? What plot? The plot had as many holes as the inexplicably pot-hole filled, overused driveway "joke" from the film. It seems as if the directors picked up a cheap copy of The Idiots Guide to Movie Clichés (much of which would have gone over their heads) and utilized every page. Twice. The movie has about as much continuity and clarity as an ADD 5-year-old in a crayon shop. The whole movie makes you feel as if you have just missed a previous scene.

I've never witnessed a film where every single character elicited such disgust and revulsion. It's like it didn't let up. They failed at even playing normal human beings. It might as well have been filmed with Martians. I mean, a dog is crowned the Duke of Dingwall. (A fitting name...) And what do the inhabitants of this bizarre little town do (who are so often mentioned and yet so rarely seen, except when portrayed by repeat actors from previous scenes...)? They applaud the whole way!

I won't even venture into the awful "sloppy-joe" sequence. Such a banal and iniquitous perversion of the art of cinema should never even have been thought of.

In sum, this movie was not worth the 8 seconds it takes to put the DVD into the player. It is a monument to how far a few desperate actors and "filmmakers" will go to make a buck or two. Which is evidently pretty far. Pretty much, the only difference between this film and a bucket of garbage is the bucket.

Watching this as an adult who loves dogs, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's a whimsical movie that anyone who doesn't take themselves too seriously can appreciate.

For me, it's a great watch when you're in the mindset for something wholesome and palatable, especially if you're a dog lover! When my head is in a bit of a dark place, this is one of those safe comfort movies that will always be able to cheer me up.

Regarding the film itself, without spoilers, there were many subplots to keep up with. This helped the pace of the movie, along with the many doggie shenanigans.

My favorite part of this movie is the dog "acting". It's clear these dogs are well taken care of, well trained, intelligent, and happy performing their tricks. I noticed many scenes included the dog "actors" tail wagging while performing their tricks. All in all, I highly recommend this movie to anyone.