Little Heroes (Children)

 

Picture: C+     Sound: C+     Extras: C     Main Program: C

 

 

One family has two very smart dogs, and when the father of the family is kidnapped by evil representatives of the Tobacco Industry, here comes the hounds!  That is the premise of the silly kids picture Little Heroes, a never say “TV movie” movie that tells us “animals good, tobacco lobbyists bad”.  Not that we were looking for Michael Mann’s The Insider (1999), but point taken.

 

Though the villain idea is cartoonish, the film is harmless, and very average.  If you like animals, it will have a special appeal, but just because it is kid’s safe does not necessarily make it a good DVD.  The cast of semi-knowns and unknowns even give us acting that are kids-safe, but that also means flat in this case.

 

As the box indicates, it wants to be Home Alone with dogs, but after three tired films from that franchise and many child neglect cases since, the effort is pointless and misguided.  There is an extra segment from PAX-TV, one of the most boring networks since the invention of the picture tube, but it is a harmless look at animals doing amusing things.  Too bad we can see the same thing done with more life on Animal Planet.

 

The full frame and color image is above average, but it is flatly lit throughout and as unmemorable as the film itself.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo plays in weak but viable Pro Logic surround, making it the DVD’s best feature by default.  Otherwise, this DVD may not be a dog, but it offers little to bark about.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo