Even movies for children should make sense. The major flaw in Mr. Peabody & Sherman, an animated film based on the 1960s cartoon Peabody’s Improbable History, is that its plot tries to go in several directions at once, leaving this viewer, at least, quite confused.
The foundation of the story is explained first thing by Mr. Peabody himself, who tells us he is the world’s smartest dog and proves it by listing his many accomplishments, which range from achieving world peace to inventing the fist bump. Simple enough so far. He’s also invented a time machine, which he uses to teach history lessons to his adopted human son, Sherman, a wide-eyed redhead who takes it all in stride.
But society apparently has a problem accepting this unique dog-boy relationship, because on Sherman’s first day of school, a social worker threatens to remove him from Mr. Peabody’s care. To underscore how sad this would be, there’s a long, sappy montage of Sherman’s childhood, set to John Lennon’s ‘Beautiful Boy.’ The rest of the movie alternates between time-travel pratfalls, pop culture jokes and forced emotional turmoil.
Despite the plot problems, the animation is beautiful and quirky. The irreverent portrayals of history’s greatest characters are fun to watch. And the kids in the theater even laughed a few times.
Should You See It? Skip this one, unless the kids are really bored. —R.K.
Viewed at chase park plaza cinemas