DC League Of Super-Pets Delivers Refreshingly Fun Entertainment That The Whole Family Can Enjoy

      Making a fun-filled experience that the whole family can enjoy is quite an undertaking but Warner Brothers admirably pulls it off with their 3D computer animated superhero flick, DC League of Super-Pets. Boasting the voice acting talents of Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Kevin Hart, Keanu Reeves, Kate McKinnon, and John Krasinski, DC League Of Super-Pets provides families with an experience that's colorful, funny, charming and places its own fun spin on the classic characters in the popular comic book universe. 

      Based on the DC comics Superhero team Legion of Super-Pets, the story has Krypto the Super-Dog ( Voiced by Dwayne Johnson) and Superman being not only inseparable best friends but fighting crime side by side in Metropolis. When the latter is kidnapped along with the rest of the Justice League, Krypto sets out to save them with the help of a ragtag group of animals whom he helps discover their newfound powers. Given that the DC cinematic universe is known for being increasingly dark and gritty, it's especially noteworthy that League Of Super-Pets takes a complete opposite approach that contains well-balanced humor for both young children and adults. The film carves its own path in exploring the universes characters with surprisingly fun twists, important messages for young children to absorb, and a tremendous amount of heart. 

      When it comes to voice performances, League Of Super-Pets cast deliver fantastic work with Dwayne Johnson being perfectly casted as Krypto/Superdog. He effectively conveys his characters loyalty and love towards Superman, along with his confusion and jealousy over the latter spending more time with Lois Lane. Matching Johnson's charismatic presence is Kevin Hart as boxer Ace/Bat-Hound, who ultimately teams up with Crypto and carries super strength. Both actors share tremendous chemistry as two dogs who form the unlikeliest alliance. Kate McKinnon is brilliant as the main antagonist, Lulu, an evil hairless guinea pig who desires to take over the world with Lex Luthor. Other strong supporting roles include John Krasinski as Kal-El/Superman with him embodying the traditional witty version of the character that fans know and love. Keanu Reeves is a complete blast as Batman/Bruce Wayne with him sharing a hilarious twist with Ace/Bat-Hound after both discover that they have more in common in regards to their reclusiveness from society. Other notable mentions include Vanessa Bayer as potbellied pig PB, Natasha Lynne as Merton/Terrific Whatzit, Diego Luna as paranoid red Squirrel, Chip, Mark Maron as the villainous Lex Luthor, Olivia Wilde as Lois Lane, Jameela Jamil as Wonder Woman, Jermaine Clement as Aquaman, John Early as The Flash, Daveed Diggs as Cyborg, Dashcam Polanco as Jessica Cruz/Green Lantern, and Keith David as Kryto's father, Dog-El. Overall, League's ensemble is brilliantly assembled and bring much energy to the story.

      As far as animation goes, director Jared Stern provides the film with 3D animation that's immersive for young audiences to watch. The real thrill that comes with the crisp animation is seeing all the familiar DC characters brought together in animated form with the newer Super-Pets team. Despite feeling generic, the films cartoon violence is still handled in a way that makes it engaging to watch. One visually striking scene in particular involves Crypto battling a gigantic version of the antagonist and flying to the sun to get maximum strength in order to defeat his opponent while the Justice League team up with the Super-Pets back on Earth to fight the main antagonist. While such a sequence isn't one that screams innovativeness, it fits right at home within the wide-scale action of the DC universe. At 105 minutes, Super-Pets is fast-moving though always prioritizes its more intimate character-driven moments. The soundtrack beautifully captures the whimsy of the super-pets while delivering chills for older fans with the inclusion of John Williams classic Superman theme and Danny Elfman's Batman music. With League, stern does a noteworthy job of bringing the DC universe to the screen in animated form while giving it a feel good tone. 

      Some of the films key themes are friendship, family, love, sacrifice, feeling left out, loving unconditionally, world domination, and jealousy with the films overall message being that there is no justice without truth. The heart of the story is the relationship between Superman and Crypto both the latter ultimately understanding and accepting Clark's prioritizing of his relationship with Lois. Each member of Crypto's team gets their respective moments to shine with minimal information presented to give insight into how they obtained their special abilities. The Justice League team feels not only true to their real character personas, but also pay homage to their live-action DCEU counterparts. The scripts humor consists of risque innuendo and clever Easter eggs with references for older audiences to pick up on, while also poking fun of both Marvel and DC with the story carrying a touch of social commentary that's directed towards calling out billionaires. The stories real thrill is seeing Crypto's new team form with each animal coming to terms with their own powers. As a whole, League's screenplay is well-rounded with it having something for young kids and adults not just in regards to the films humor, but also the themes it explores with a surprising amount of maturity and thoughtfulness.

     With DC's cinematic future being in a limbo as fans wait to see what the future lies, Super-Pets takes the initiative here with richly satisfying results. What makes League Of Super-Pets an above average addition to the universe is the refreshing, funny, and heartfelt way it goes about presenting it's story combined with its wonderfully talented cast. The film strikes the right chord with how it entertains young kids and adults while doing its own thing with absolute confidence. DC fans will find League Of Super-Pets to be a genuinely crowd-pleasing experience that fills the universes temporary void for some good old-fashioned superhero entertainment that's charming as well as nostalgic. As the film shows, not everything has

to be dark and gritty to be a worthy comic book adaption. 

Final Verdict:  A must watch for DC fans as well as general audiences.  

Images Courtesy Of Warner Brothers.