Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet and Kevin Hart in the Chris Renaud movie ‘The Secret Life of Pets’

Preceding its sequel by three years, The Secret Life of Pets (2016) introduced the world to the notion that pets live an active social life when their people leave into the world that exists outside the home. Rooted in New York City, New York, this action comedy was directed by Chris Renaud and written by Cinco Paul, Ken Daurio and Brian Lynch.

(From left, Eric Stonestreet as Duke, Kevin Hart as Snowball and Louis C.K. as Max in the Chris Renaud movie The Secret Life of Pets).

The movie begins by setting the close relationship that Max, as voiced by Louis C.K., has with Katie, as voiced by Ellie Kemper. While anxiously awaiting Katie’s return from work, Max shares his looking forward to the return of Katie with other animals in the building, including Chloe, Mel, Buddy and Sweatpea, as voiced by Lake Bell, Bobby Moynihan, Hannibal Buress and Tara Strong, respectively. When Katie introduces Duke to the home with Max, the two find ways to respond to one another in a less than cordial manner. Eric Stonestreet voiced Duke.

(Ellie Kemper as Katie in the Chris Renaud movie The Secret Life of Pets).

The disagreements between Duke and Max move beyond playful when Ozone and a group of other animals attacks the pair on the street while the pair were being walked by an inattentive handler. Ozone, voiced by Steve Coogan, separates the pair from their collars.

(From left, Lake Bell as Chloe, Tara Strong as Sweetpea, Chris Renaud as Norman, Bobby Moynihan as Mel, Hannibal Buress as Buddy, Albert Brooks as Tiberius and Jenny Slate as Gidget in the Chris Renaud movie The Secret Life of Pets).

As Max and Duke get thrown into a world with stray animals, animal control, and legitimate fear for what happens when captured by animal control, the pair encounter Snowball, leader of a group of abandoned and rejected pets. Max and Duke must use their wits to engage with Snowball and his friends in the streets of New York City. as the pair are engaged with Snowball, as voiced by Kevin Hart, the building mates of Max and Duke mount a rescue.

(Dana Carvey as Pops in the Chris Renaud movie The Secret Life of Pets).

Gidget, Tiberius and Norman join the rescue party, recruiting Pops as the wise old patriarch of the domesticated animals seeking to help get their friends back home. Gidget, Tiberius, Norman and Pops were voiced by Jenny Slate, Albert Brooks, director Chris Renaud and Dana Carvey, respectively. The dynamics of the larger group contributed to how the different groups relate to each other, eventually getting to a point where the goodness of the community leads to positive results for the full scale of pets included in the story.

(Steve Coogan as Ozone in the Chris Renaud movie The Secret Life of Pets).

The charm of The Secret Life and Pets surpasses that of the sequel for me. The notion where the introduction of a completely new set of characters with a new social engagement structure, rather than continuing that structure into subsequent movies, helps earn this Chris Renaud directed movie 3.75-stars on a scale of one-to-five.

Matt – Saturday, March 4, 2023

Patton Oswalt, Kevin Hart, Harrison Ford and the movie ‘The Secret Life of Pets 2’

Three years after the original, The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019) follows the lives of pets in an apartment in New York City as pet owners leave for the day. The sequel presentation includes the original cast with the added mixture of a circus, a farm, and an airplane flight to the mix.

(Patton Oswalt as Max and Eric Stonestreet as Duke with Henry Lynch as Liam in the movie The Secret Life of Pets 2).

Max and Duke are front and center in the sequel film to The Secret Life of Pets (2016), with a new actor standing in for the voice of Max. A major change for Max especially is feeling ownership for the new little person to join the family after Katie, the person of Max and Nick, marries Chuck. Baby Liam joins the family and grows to a toddler who loves Max and Duke.

(Patton Oswalt as Max and Harrison Ford as Rooster in the movie The Secret Life of Pets 2).

The adventure for Max and Duke starts with the notion of change. When the feeling of love comes along, a visit with for Max and Duke with Liam, Katie and Chuck to a family farm in Chuck’s family brings about some much different living than in the city. Rooster goes about offering some brotherly support for Max, who feels scared when he thinks of all the ways that Liam might get hurt.

(Kevin Hart returns as the voice of Snowball. Tiffany Haddish voices Daisy in a new adventure involving the circus and a lion. Dana Carvey reprises his role as Pops in The Secret Life of Pets 2).

While Max and Duke are away, separate adventures led by Snowball and Gidget emerge. Chloe introduces Snowball to Daisy, who brings personality and her acquaintance with a lion named Hu caught up in some circus intrigue. Hu is held against his will and treated severely by circus people and circus animals. Daisy asks for help in saving Hu, and a second adventure with the flare of Daisy and Snowball ensue. Pops lends some help in saving the day.

(Jenny Slate voices Gidget and Lake Bell voices Chloe in the movie The Secret Life of Pets 2).

Meanwhile, Gidget has been given the task of keeping Max’s favorite toy, Busy Bee, protected and safe. Gidget takes this effort seriously, seeing the toy as a stand-in child for a romantic relationship with Max where Busy Bee is offered significance. Adventure ensues with the many cats in the home of the home of the Cat Lady, wherein the fate of Busy Bee is questioned. Chloe befriends Gidget in supporting her behavior with cats.

(Brian Lynch wrote the screenplay for The Secret Life of Pets 2).

The three adventures ultimately join together into a single adventure where the pets of the apartment work together to bring about a just result for Hu. Max, meanwhile, gets to roam freely without his cone, and the touching point of the movie happens with Liam declares his love for Max and Duke while beginning his experience at pre-school. The film offers a musical sendoff for Snowball. All ends with a feel good ending to a family friendly film.

(Jonathan del Val and Chris Renaud co-directed The Secret Life of Pets 2).

The Secret Life and Pets 2 hits on many levels. A scene with Hu and the head of the circus struck us as a bit intense for the target audience of this film. This scene should not keep those with little ones from the film, however. For me, The Secret Life and Pets 2 earns 3.5-stars on a scale of one-to-five stars.

Matt – Wednesday, July 24, 2019