Dog Man: From comic books to the big screen

After nine years of 13 comic book releases in Dav Pilkey’s Dog Man collection, old memories return to viewers as the “Dog Man” movie entered theaters.

“Seeing how long ago the books came out, for [those] that did read them, [the movie] will be a send-back,” said OH sophomore Grayden Bianc.

Released on Jan. 31, the 90-minute film packs action, comedy, and sentimental messages from the comics that progress fluently in the story.

“I kind of expected it to be childish, but it was a little more on the mature side,” said OH sophomore Avery Paisker.

Despite the PG rating and many whimsical connections to the comics, the film presents valuable lessons of forgiveness and second chances. “I went into the film a diabolical fiend, and I left a do-gooder,” said OH senior Mark Horton joked.

The rating for this movie solidifies its standing in theaters, with an 80% critic and 83% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.3/10 rating on IMDb.

“[I think I’d rate “Dog Man”] maybe a seven out of ten, I just feel like it was kind of a simple story line. You could kind of guess what was gonna happen,” said Paisker. “But I think the jokes made it funny.”

Pacing & Story line

“Dog Man” kicks off with how Dog Man came to be, through an accident regarding a time bomb set up by the film’s antagonist, Petey.

From there, the story of Dog Man proceeds similarly to the first three books, but with some slight alterations for the adaptation. The initial pacing was very quick which left viewers overwhelmed, but later slowed down as the movie continued.

“My only criticism is that I wish the film was longer, ” Horton said. “A three-hour cut of it would very much enhance the experience.”

Dialogue

The volume while viewing “Dog Man” began higher than anticipated within the first few scenes when the action began, notably altering initial expectations of the film.

Character voices attract attention and create unwavering focus but at the cost of possibly leaving older viewers displeased by the noise being too loud.

“I don’t think it’s for our age group at all,” said OH senior Jack Beaudette. “I think it’s more directed towards the younger audience.”

Setting aside noise once the movie settles into its plot, dialogue between characters can quickly go from humorous to genuine words, as per the changing tones throughout scenes in the film.

Music & Visuals

“Dog Man” delivered when it came to music, featuring tracks from artists such as Yung Gravy and Miley Cyrus.

Tom Howe, composer for the film’s soundtrack, focused on synergizing scenes with the music, often having intense music with an intense scene or mellow music with a mellow scene. In total, 28 original soundtracks were made by Howe and one by Yung Gravy, totaling 50:24 of music in the film.

The only real issue with the soundtrack was minor inconsistency: “Dog Man” mainly pursued the jazz approach but would often slip into different genres depending on the scene.

“Dog Man” had similar animation to its predecessor, “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie,” the first film of Dav Pilkey’s works. However, “Dog Man” steals the show with the emphasized comic book effects and exaggerated panels. This adds to the comic theme for the adaptation.

“The experience was far greater than I could’ve imagined. One might even say it was bone-a-rific,” joked Horton.

“Dog Man” truly was a cinematic experience for many viewers regardless of their personal opinions. Its rewatchability and humor solidify its place as a family comedy film that can be enjoyed by all ages.