This is one of those movies that truly is - and I don't mean to use the cliché - entertaining whether you are a kid or an adult. The dalmatians and other animals are a lot of fun to watch.
Glenn Close must have had a lot of fun making this film, playing the evil "Cruela De Vil." Just as much fun, maybe more, were the two bumbling dog-nappers - Hugh Laurie and Mark Williams, I believe - idiots who were genuinely funny in their stupidity. Their dialog was hilarious.
There are nice colors in here, too, so a widescreen DVD is good to have if you enjoy this movie. I didn't find the surround sound to be much.
Speaking of clichés and such, there are some drawbacks here that were a little annoying to me, like overdoing the intelligence of the dogs, making them almost human-like with their abilities to understand English. In fact, it's taken to the absurd level level of some of the animals being smarter than humans. Please....give me a break! Also, you get the quick "film romance" in which two people (Jeff Daniels and Joely Richardson) barely meet and already they are in love, getting married in no time. Please....give me a break!
Still, recommended if you want a want 103 minutes of a "cute" story and don't take any of it the least bit seriously as if anything in here could really happen.
101 Dalmatians
1996
Action / Adventure / Comedy / Crime / Family
101 Dalmatians
1996
Action / Adventure / Comedy / Crime / Family
Plot summary
After a wild chase in the bustling streets of London, struggling computer game author Roger and his pet dalmatian, Pongo, by a welcome twist of fate, are dragged into St. James Park and meet with charming fashion designer Anita and her pet dalmatian, Perdita. Soon, one thing will lead to another, and before they know it, Roger and Anita get married, and Perdita gets pregnant. However, their short-lived joy is disrupted when Anita's glamorous but horrible boss, Cruella DeVil, dognaps the innocent fifteen puppies with the intention of making a luxurious coat with their fabulously spotted fur. Eventually, along with Perdita's, Cruella manages to bring the total to the staggering number of ninety-nine dalmatians puppies.
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Colorful, Cute & Clichéd
Not as good as the animation, but well worth watching!
There is a lot to enjoy, especially Glenn Close's near-perfect performance as Cruella DeVil. She was absolutely brilliant here, truly evil, and was clearly having a lot of fun. Hugh Laurie made a memorable appearance as Jasper, and some of his lines are very funny. The scenes in the mansion, were inspired, I think by the Home Alone franchise, and for this sort of film it did work. Jeff Daniels and Joely Richardson are more subdued but deliver very human portrayals of the Dearlys. Joan Plowright was fine also as the nanny. And Michael Kamen's music was lovely. However, I much prefer the animated version to this, and here's why. The dogs were very cute, but nothing they did was particularly interesting. Also the Twilight Bark sequence was lost, and that's what made the animation so poignant. It also isn't as entertaining as the animated version. All in all, an entertaining film, that just lacked the ingredients that made the animated version a masterpiece. 7/10 Bethany Cox
Rollocking energy
A lot better live action Disney film than I was expecting, better than the animated version in fact. Sure, Glenn Close is pure pantotime, but the various British cast members are surprisingly funny and the story has a good rollocking energy to it.