Strays

 

8/10

This is basically a movie where someone said to themselves, "What if we did an R-rated comedy version of The Incredible Journey?" In Strays, Reggie (voiced by Will Ferrell) is abandoned in the city by his awful owner Doug (played by SNL/Last Man on Earth's Will Forte). Reggie and some new dog friends decide to travel back to his home in order to get revenge on Doug.

If you're worried that the trailer may have used up all the A material, you'd be pleased to know that this isn't the case here. A ton of crazy and funny stuff that you couldn't predict goes on here. Not every joke lands, but they're quickly replaced by ones that do. I had tears in my eyes with the ending I was laughing so much.

Get that this is a hard R. Writer Dan Perrault (creator of American Vandal) takes full advantage of the fact that you can do adult content with dogs that is harder to do than with humans. I'm amazed at how clever he was with coming up jokes involving dog behavior and anatomy. But, this should also be a warning for some. This is a hard R. If you're not a fan of scatological humor or other gross stuff, this may not be for you. (There's one scene in particular I felt I didn't need to witness.)

Be aware that the jokes are clever, but the actual plot itself is rather predictable in where it's going.

As in Megamind, Will Ferrell does a fine job of being sympathetic and playing a character better than you'd expect considering his tendency to be a personality actor. The best performance in this is Jamie Foxx as the voice of Reggie's new friend Bug. He plays the completely cliched streetwise animal who befriends a domestic one, but he jumps into the role with both legs. 

Love the location scouting for the woods the dogs walk through; some very scenic areas.

Recommended. Maybe too raunchy for some, but for everyone else this is really funny.