Marmaduke (2010)

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General		Extras
Category	Family	Main Menu Introduction Main Menu Audio DVD-ROM Extras-Digital Copy Deleted Scenes Featurette-Behind The Scenes-2
Rating
Year Of Production	2010
Running Time	84:33 (Case: 87)
RSDL / Flipper	Dual Layered	Cast & Crew
Start Up	Ads Then Menu
Region Coding	4	Directed By	Tom Dey
Studio Distributor	Twentieth Century Fox	Starring	Owen Wilson george Spirit Emma Stone Huck George Lopez Mai Tai Christopher Mintz-Plasse Dolly
Case	?
RPI	$39.95	Music	Christopher Lennertz

Video		Audio
Pan & Scan/Full Frame	None	English Dolby Digital 5.1 (384Kb/s) English Descriptive Audio Dolby Digital 5.1 (384Kb/s) Catalan Dolby Digital 5.1 (384Kb/s)
Widescreen Aspect Ratio	2.35:1
16x9 Enhancement
Video Format	576i (PAL)
Original Aspect Ratio	2.35:1	Miscellaneous
Jacket Pictures	No
Subtitles	English Catalan	Smoking	No
		Annoying Product Placement	No
		Action In or After Credits	No

     Kids movies are pumped out with great regularity these days. Some are instant classics, others are quality films, many are firmly in the middle ground and others are very average indeed. This one is certainly not as bad as some I have seen, however it is no great shakes either. Kids will enjoy its silliness, smart alec dialogue, goofy star (voiced by Owen Wilson) and cute talking animals. Adults will take more notice of the incredibly clichéd plot, the ordinary human acting and the trite story line of needing to work out who your real friends are. But, this is a film made for kids after all, so we should form opinions about it on that basis. The film is loosely based on the cartoon strip of the same name (in that it involves a Great Dane who causes trouble).

     The story such as it is involves a family from Kansas who own a Great Dane called Marmaduke. The father, Phil, is a marketing manager for a dog food company. Early in the film he gets offered a new job for a bigger company based in California and decides to move the family. The family consists of his wife Debbie, Barbara, teenage girl, Brian, a younger boy and Sarah, a toddler. They also have a cat called Carlos. The plot revolves around Marmaduke and the dogs he meets at the dog park including a female mutt called Mazie, the boss dog of the dog park, Bosco, and his pedigree girlfriend, Jezebel (voiced by Fergie). He, of course, chooses the wrong people to be friendly with but it all works out in the end after some dog surfing and other adventures. William H Macy also appears as Phil's new boss in California, although his involvement is pretty much limited to getting knocked over by Marmaduke. Other voices are provided by Steve Coogan, Sam Elliott and Keifer Sutherland.

     My young boys thought this film was a lot of fun and enjoyed the dialogue between the animals. It is certainly not a great film but it is fun for kids.

Video

     The video quality is quite good, although there were some MPEG compression artefacts. The feature is presented in a 2.35:1 aspect ratio which the original aspect ratio. It is 16x9 enhanced widescreen.

     The picture was very clear and sharp especially in close up. Shadow detail is very good. There were some MPEG artefacts especially noticeable during motion and some blurring during camera pans. The colour was very good with no issues to report. There were no other noticeable artefacts.

     There are subtitles in English & Castellano which are clear and easy to read.

     There is no noticeable layer change during playback.

Video Ratings Summary

Sharpness
Shadow Detail
Colour
Grain/Pixelization
Film-To-Video Artefacts
Film Artefacts
Overall

Audio

     The audio quality is decent but at a less than optimal bitrate. This DVDs contain three audio options, an English Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 384 Kb/s, an English Audio Descriptive Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 384 Kb/s and a Castellano Dolby Digital 5.1 soundtrack encoded at 384 Kb/s.

     Dialogue was quite clear and easy to understand. The score by Christopher Lennertz is fine without standing out. The surround speakers provided some mild atmosphere but little more. The subwoofer was used to support action scenes.

Audio Ratings Summary

Dialogue
Audio Sync
Clicks/Pops/Dropouts
Surround Channel Use
Subwoofer
Overall

     Subtitles are available on the extras.

Menu

     The menu included an introduction, music and motion.

Digital Copy

     This disc includes access to a digital copy using a code provided in the retail pack.

Deleted Scenes (1:57)

     Three mildly amusing extra scenes.

Cowabarka! More Surfing Dog Fun (5:17)

     Featurette about Dog Surfing and how the scenes in the film were shot.

Canine Casting (2:49)

     Dog auditions for the movie.

    The Region 1 release is esssentially the same unless you are looking for either French or Spanish language options. Draw.

     A film for kids about a Great Dane called Marmaduke.

     The video quality is quite good. The audio quality is decent. The extras are pretty average.

Video
Audio
Extras
Plot
Overall