The slapdash dialogue and smug vocal talent detract from the visual appeal of the most energetic sequences (like a raucous train chase) and what's left of Danot's designs.
Doogal (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:14
Fresh:0
Rotten:14
Average Rating:2.6/10
Consensus: Overloaded with pop culture references, but lacking in compelling characters and plot, Doogal is too simpleminded even for the kiddies.
Theatrical Release:Feb 24, 2006 Wide
Box Office: $7,308,609
Synopsis: The origins of the characters in DOOGAL stretch back to 1964 and a TV program called THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT (or "Le Manège Enchanté" as its French creator Serge Danot called it). The show became a... The origins of the characters in DOOGAL stretch back to 1964 and a TV program called THE MAGIC ROUNDABOUT (or "Le Manège Enchanté" as its French creator Serge Danot called it). The show became a popular staple on British television, and this full-length movie is the first attempt to acquaint American audiences with Danot's magical world. Zeebad (voiced by THE DAILY SHOW's Jon Stewart) is a recently escaped convict whose powers as a sorcerer are known throughout the land. While fleeing from prison, the embittered Zeebad decides to capture some mystical diamonds with the power to freeze the sun. Zeebad's devious dream is to freeze the entire globe as an act of revenge on those who imprisoned him. But he doesn't bank on the resilient forces of heroic canine Doogal (Daniel Tay) and his friends, a snail named Brian (William H. Macy), a hippie-ish rabbit called Dylan (Jimmy Fallon), and a loveable pink cow by the name of Ermintrude (Whoopi Goldberg). Together, they venture across the world in a desperate bid to find the ancient stones before the dastardly Zeebad gets his hands on them. Doogal and his friends scatter a few amusing references to popular culture into the plot as the story unfolds, and the animation is rendered in a style instantly familiar to fans of movies such as FINDING NEMO and HOODWINKED. Fans of the original television show who are looking for a fond, nostalgic experience won't find much to remind them of Danot's creation in DOOGAL, which is a fast-paced action romp aimed at a young audience. But for a new generation of fans this is a great way to get acquainted with a bunch of loveable characters who passed their 40th birthday on completion of the film. [More]
Starring: Ian McKellen, Tom Baker, Jim Broadbent, Joanna Lumley
Starring: Ian McKellen, Tom Baker, Jim Broadbent, Joanna Lumley, Kylie Minogue, Daniel Tay, Chevy Chase, Judi Dench, Jon Stewart, Kevin Smith, William H. Macy, Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon
Director: Frank Passingham, Dave Borthwick, Jean Duval
Director: Frank Passingham, Dave Borthwick, Jean Duval
Screenwriter: Paul Bassett Davis
Producer: Laurent Rodon
Composer: Mark Thomas
Studio: Weinstein Company
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Reviews for Doogal
Where is it written that 4-year-olds don't deserve a good story, decent characters, and a modicum of coherence?
It's a movie that scrounges so desperately for laughs, it features both a flatulent moose and a flatulent train.
Doogal has a few moments of wit, but they're largely lost thanks to inconsistent direction and an uncertainty about who or what the movie is for.
The titular canine hero has all the appeal of a talking bathmat. The animation is ugly, and the American re-write -- which, in typical Hollywood fashion, confuses topicality with humor, as if simply namedropping is enough -- adds nothing.
In Doogal, setting the world right again involves a badly paced quest for three diamonds, assorted jokes that don't land, and a daringly incoherent climactic confrontation.
Doogal is an exceeding lame animated feature about a bunch of kids trapped on a magical carousel -- but it's adults forced to sit through this slow-moving, G-rated Lord of the Rings knockoff who will be begging for mercy.
A dreadful animated movie stuffed with bad puns and little internal logic.
If we keep saying, 'Yeah, it's lousy, but there's so much worse stuff out there,' and we keep sighing, rolling our eyes, and going anyway, we'll keep getting slapdash, manipulative product like this. Kids deserve better. So do dogs.
Something tells me that the original dialogue, replaced here by references to M.C. Hammer and The Shining, would have added a little to the movie’s limited charms.
The key frame animation, based on three-dimensional models, is rudimentary, with none of the characters proving visually arresting.
In attempting to turn a tiny Anglo-Franco amusement into a full-blown Yankee extravaganza, The Weinstein Co. has managed to choke every last bit of charm out of the characters and their setting, no mean feat for a show this enchanting.
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