'Mr. Peabody & Sherman': There's Life in the Old Dog Yet
 Popcorn Column
by Michael S. Goldberger
|
Twentieth Century Fox
Mr. Peabody serves lessons in history and tolerance in equal measures while having a dog-goned good time. |
A human can learn a lot from a dog, especially if said hound is the smartest person, er, I mean being, in the whole wide world.
I refer to the title characters in "Mr. Peabody & Sherman," resurrected from the 1960s for the good of all humankind by director Rob Minkoff.
I had forgotten, sigh, how much I enjoyed the "Peabody's Improbable History" portions of TV's "Rocky and Bullwinkle Show" back when I was only a few years older than Sherman. How cool I thought it might be to have a pooch friend and guardian as brainy as Mr. Peabody, Sherman's adoptive dad.
 |
|
|
| out of 4 | ||
Oh, not to say I hadn't fully anthropomorphized my dear dog Taffy, a mutt/wirehaired terrier with a perfect black eye who, aside from an Achilles heel that compelled him to, alas, chase cars, had scholarly abilities in his own right. Through my fantasy syllogism, Mr. Peabody simply validated my assertion of Taffy's intelligence.
This is a nostalgically indulgent treat if you are a baby boomer, made even more gratifying by the care and dedication exerted to modernize the brilliant bowwow without detracting from the integrity of the franchise. Executive producer Tiffany Ward, daughter of series creator Jay Ward, made sure of that.
Regrettably, in one of the rare events where it would be a welcome situation, I didn't see this splendidly animated film with an audience full of 9-year-olds. The mirth it might have generated among them would be a true barometer of its target appeal.
But a serendipitous irony creates a dynamic that perhaps even the producers themselves didn't contemplate. Just as "Mr. Peabody and Sherman," about a dog that's master to a little boy, celebrates a reverse on convention, children, ever more canny than they're given credit for, might see the fun and profit in accompanying significant elders to their cartoon mecca, and at least partially enjoying it through their eyes.
You still get popcorn, nonpareils, Whoppers, Goobers ... maybe even nachos with that cheese stuff…junk your parents might not allow, at least not with such reckless abandon.
Heck, it's Saturday. And you get to see Grandpa laugh, and maybe even wrap your mind around the idea that this old guy you love so much watched this cartoon when he was little like you. So, if he looks over to see if you're laughing, kindly emit a chortle or two.
Actually, it shouldn't be much of a stretch. This is wittily written. Hey, it's where my generation learned some of its historical fact, fiction and satire. What Hippies occupying what college administration building could have instituted such important social change without a working knowledge of the political thought imparted by Mr. Peabody?
But don't worry. Junior won't go subversive. Yet he will more than likely enjoy the freewheeling and heady creativity, a definite divergence in style from today's mainstream offerings for the younger set. Mom and Dad, if familiar with the series, will most likely know if this is their own genius' box of juice. But just in case the source material is unfamiliar to them, here for the great unwashed is a synopsis.
Mr. Peabody, an abandoned pup, rose above his circumstances to become rich, scholarly and famously urbane. Wishing to give back, he adopts and raises a similarly cast-off infant and, through the whimsically judicious employment of the time machine he invented, educates Sherman in every discipline via live, firsthand examples. This includes intercession from cognoscenti like Albert Einstein and Leonardo da Vinci, to name only a couple, all known to Peabody on a first-name basis.
Unfortunately, however, in addition to the pangs of relinquishing a portion of Sherman's education when it comes time for the lad to start school, Peabody soon has to cope with a whole new set of fatherly concerns. Specifically, appeasing the angry parents of little Penny Peterson, who the precocious Sherman unintentionally shows up by informing that the George Washington cherry tree story she related is "apocryphal." Huh?
Oy vey! A chain-reaction is put in motion, and soon evil, prejudiced Mrs. Grunion from Social Services is trying to wrest Sherman from Mr. Peabody, contending a dog cannot be a fit parent. And so the stage is set for metaphorical lessons about bullying, tolerance, respect, love and proper behavior in general.
Voyaging through the ages in search of wisdom, truth and redemption, "Mr. Peabody & Sherman" creatively makes its case in a colorfully contrived, logically illogical twisting of history, and along the way causes us several heartwarming laughs. While some may shun its mind-expanding sophistication, most will find that this pedigreed tail-wagger is that rare breed of kiddie flick that entertains not only our small fries, but the child within us as well.
"Mr. Peabody & Sherman," rated PG, is a Twentieth Century Fox Film Corp. release directed by Rob Minkoff and stars the voices of Ty Burrell, Max Charles and Ariel Winter. Running time: 92 minutes
