Garfield ** (2004, Breckin Meyer, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Stephen Tobolowsky, voice of Bill Murray) – Classic Movie Review 2226

The real star of director Peter Howitt’s harmless 2004 children’s comedy is the inimitable vocals of Bill Murray, as the jokey voice of computerised fat cat Garfield. Murray is the making of this daft kids’ romp that purrs cheerily along without having much in the way of bite or claws.

But Breckin Meyer and Jennifer Love Hewitt make no impression at all as the cat’s master and the cute local vet he fancies, and the normally reliable Stephen Tobolowsky is embarrassing as a nasty, dog-snatching TV star called Happy Chapman. Meyer plays Jon Arbuckle, who has a cat called Garfield but buys a second pet, a dog named Odie, who is abducted, leaving up to Garfield to find and rescue the pooch.

Based on the comic strip by Jim Davis, with a screenplay by Joel Cohen and Alec Sokolow, it could be catnip for younger kids. But there’s not really much fun to be had here for grown-ups, though Garfield looks and acts darned cute.

It was so popular that the star cast returned for Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties in 2006.

© Derek Winnert 2015 Classic Movie Review 2226

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