Family Comedy ‘Secret Life Of Pets’ Featuring Louis C.K., Kevin Hart, And Jenny Slate Opens Thursday, Early Reviews, Spoilers

Secret Life of Pets, the latest from NBCUniversal-owned Illumination Entertainment, the studio behind hits Minions, Despicable Me, and Despicable Me 2 is making its nationwide debut Thursday, July 7, as reported by IMDb. The production company is estimated to have spent $75 million creating The Secret Life of Pets; early looks at the film through its trailers show graphics that the Inquisitr previously described as a “mash-up of all the best parts of a mobile puzzle game.”

Secret Life of Pets includes a top-billed cast seemingly befitting its hefty budget. Names lending their voices to Secret Life of Pets include Albert Brooks and comedians Louis C.K., Jenny Slate, and Kevin Hart, among many others, and was co-directed by Chris Renaud and Yarrow Cheney, who worked together on the Despicable Me films.

The film was released earlier in the U.K., Norway, Israel, Iceland, and Hong Kong, among other nations, beginning in mid-June, as reported by IMDb, giving overseas viewers of the Secret Life of Pets a chance to write reviews and record their impressions, with comparisons to Disney’s Zootopia and Toy Story being made.

“I really didn’t care for this at all” Gary Jones with YouTube’s Culchie Cameras stated after watching Secret Life of Pets.

“If you have to choose between one and the other,” Gary said of Secret Life of Pets and Zootopia. “Go with Zootopia.”

Users with access to IMDb’s MetaCritic rate Secret Life of Pets with a score of 64, based on the reviews of six critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives Secret Life of Pets a rating of 84 percent, based on 25 reviews.

Spoiler alert for the remainder of the article.

The underlying story of animals’ lives told in Secret Life of Pets is described by the YouTubers as being “as old as animation itself.” In the film, two dogs, Max, played by Louis C.K., and Duke, played by Eric Stonestreet, become friends when Max is adopted into Duke’s family. What is first reported to be an uneasy relationship is put to the test when the dogs become lost in New York, followed by dog catchers, as well as a group of “abandoned” animals.

Secret Life of Pets is said to continue with Gidget, played by Jenny Slate, helping the pair of lost dogs find their way home. Gidget is reported to then develop a romantic interest in Max.

“She’s got a good voice for this kind of work,” is how YouTuber Gary described Slate’s performance.

“It’s a very basic story,” Gary states of Secret Life of Pets while his co-host, Kayla, compares the plot to that of Toy Story. The hosts discuss the overall plausibility of the concept — animals leading secret lives.

“The movie really did not hit home for me,” Gary concludes.

“The settings in the movie were beautifully animated,” Gary later stated, complimenting the design of Secret Life of Pets, perhaps searching for positives. “Each apartment had its own personality.”

“It was good, but I find myself comparing it to… Zootopia, which was just amazing,” Kayla says of Secret Life of Pets. Kayla also described the character Snowball, a rabbit, as “so violent.” The hosts questioned the suitability of some jokes dealing with death for a children’s movie. Secret Life of Pets is also reported to make references to drug use.

Kayla and Gary were each able to cite favorite portions of Secret Life of Pets, displaying that despite the overall panning of the film it did have some redeeming qualities. Kayla felt that the relationship between Max and Duke left unfulfilled potential for development. Gary said the lack of character development in Secret Life of Pets was just one reason the film was “forgettable.”

[Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images]