HBO // 2008 // 45 Minutes // Not Rated
Reviewed by Judge David Johnson // March 28th, 2008
An ear for music and a tail for trouble.
Previously seen on the HBO Family channel, the Puppy Plays series is a dialog-free collection of live-action shorts starring nauseatingly adorable puppy dogs running around on small adventures. With Puppy Plays -- The Classics our furry-four-legged pals find themselves in heaps of trouble, wandering around a store, traipsing about the countryside and all other manner of low-impact misadventure-having.
The gimmick? All the action is set to classical music. Each small story opens with a brief bit of narrative, setting the scene and then it's off to the races with nonstop classical music and nightmarishly cute cuteness.
And that's it. Forty-five minutes of doggies walking around with classical music blaring in the background. Some of the smash hit artists on the disc for your enjoyment:
Mozart!
Tchaikovsky!
Schubert!
Wagner!
Look at that lineup! I defy you to find a TV show starring cute dogs walking around with classical music blaring in the background that features such an all-star selection of dead white musicians!
Look, something like this is pretty much impossible to review. If you think your kid would a) enjoy or b) developmentally benefit from watching he dog/classical music thing, by all means track this sucker down. Me? After ten minutes I wanted to drive a tent stake into my forehead. I think it was the lack of dialogue that messed me up and the classical music, presented to fill the audio void, grew overbearing quickly. And God forbid you leave the disc parked on the menu for an extended period of time; the incessant looping menu music is enough to drive someone bat-#$%@ crazy.
Again, and I know this sounds weird because its my job to offer a substantial critical response to this material, but don't think you have to listen to me. The disc annoyed me, but I'm not the intended audience and if you would hazard your kids getting a kick out of it, please, help yourself.
Extras: puppy care tips, three bonus puppy tales and behind-the-scenes with puppy trainers.
Review content copyright © 2008 David Johnson; Site layout and review format copyright © 1998 - 2008 HipClick Designs LLC
Scales of Justice
Judgment: 75
Perp Profile
Studio: HBO
Video Formats:
* Full Frame
Audio Formats:
* Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo (English)
Subtitles:
* None
Running Time: 45 Minutes
Release Year: 2008
MPAA Rating: Not Rated
Distinguishing Marks
* Puppy Tips
* Bonus Takes
* Behind-the-Scenes
Accomplices
* IMDb
http://us.imdb.com/title/tt1172536/combined
* Official Site
http://www.puppyplays.com/index.htm