Customer Reviews

Old Dogs (Single-Disc Widescreen)

5 star:		(36)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(17)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(18)

 

 

I am not sure why, but I didn't laugh or smile once while watching this movie. This movie was so dull and silly and the jokes seemed to be forced on us. I think Travolta should stick to serious roles and Robin Williams should choose the script better next time. I couldn't watch more than 45 minutes of this movie and had to stop it immediately afterwards.

I totally regret renting this movie.

[3.5 stars]. Old Dogs is a mix of Disney-style kid's movie and a bizarre Robin Williams comedy. On the one hand, it is funny at times. It executes classic jokes like the golfer hitting a bystander in the groins fairly well. On the other hand, a lot of the jokes were clearly aimed at a pretty young and immature audience, like the gorilla hugging Seth Green. I don't mind kid-friendly humor, and in fact found this a lot better than the vulgar comedies aimed at teens. However, Old Dogs seems to be trying to appeal to both kids and adults, but I don't think it does.

I think part of the reason is the casting. Again, here I had mixed feelings. The acting was generally was very good for this type of movie. In addition to Robin Williams and John Travolta, it also included Seth Green, Kelly Preston, Matt Dillon, Bernie Mac, and Lori Laughlin (the little girl, Travolta's daughter, was also adorable). Yet, it might have been a bit too crowded. Rather than falling in love with the kids, I felt like I barely got to know them. At times, Travolta and Williams seemed to get a good dynamic, but it just wasn't enough.

Overall, this will probably be a satisfying comedy for "family nights." It's funny enough for parents to enjoy, but probably won't be particularly memorable. I was disappointed though that it wasn't better, especially given the great comedic talent in the cast. I'd be willing to give an Old Dogs sequel a try with the same cast, assuming the writers and directors really put some thought into coming up with a funny script.

In the insufferable and unwatchable "Old Dogs," John Travolta and Robin Williams play longtime Manhattan business partners who've been best friends since high school. One's a superannuated swinging bachelor (I'll let you guess which); the other's a divorced commitment-phobe who suddenly discovers that he's the father of two fraternal twins from a woman (Kelly Preston) he briefly married, then got an annulment from, seven years earlier. Now that the kids are in his life, Williams is learning what it means to be a daddy - movie-comedy style, that is.

I guess there must be an audience out there for these dumbed-down daddy-day-care scenarios, featuring grown men who are more childish and immature than the kids they`re supposed to be raising, but, frankly, I don't get the appeal. Suffice it to say, the script - a gruesome combination of painfully contrived setups, unfunny jokes, teeth-grinding sentimentality and stunningly desperate slapstick routines - feels as if it were written by a not particularly gifted third-grader; the direction is low-grade and cheesy, and the acting consists of little more than nonstop mugging for the camera. It even employs the oldest family-comedy standby of them all: a cutesy dog for cutaway reaction shots that are somehow supposed to make the whole thing even more side-splitting and hilarious than it already is. (And, in deference to their careers, we hesitate to even mention that Bernie Mac, Ann-Margret, and Matt Dillon drop in for some ill-advised cameos, which I`m sure they`ve since come to regret).

This may not be the worst movie ever made by either Travolta or Williams, but it's certainly right down there vying for the title. An embarrassment for all concerned, the pooch included.

My husband and I went to see this movie this weekend and we both loved it. We laughed out loud several times which I consider a must for a successful comedy. I was pleased to find that there was plenty of fun throughout the movie rather than the only funny parts being those that were advertised on TV, which seems to happen often with comedies. The part where they got their medicine mixed up was predictable (you knew it was going to happen somehow) but very funny nonetheless. I thought it was neat how they incorporated flashback scenes in the movie and those were funny as well. I also enjoyed the beginning where they took old pictures of both Robin Willians and John Travolta and put them together to show them as friends since childhood. As someone who remembers Robin from his Mork days and John from his Welcome Back Kotter days, that was a lot of fun. I was also reminded why I had a crush on John Travolta back in 6th grade. His is still pretty easy on the eyes. He has the talent to play a bad guy or a good guy. He plays the good guy great in this movie. Robin William's talent goes without saying.

The movie was appropriate for families. My 12 year old son would have loved it. The kids were cute and did a good job. The little girl is Travolta's own daughter and she has her fathers beautiful eyes.

If you are in the mood for a fun comedy to enjoy then I highly recommend this movie.

I really have no idea how to define this movie... Never have I seen a big-budget movie as unsure about what it intends to be as Disney's Old Dogs. The entire time this movie one thought constantly ran through my head: "Why?" Why waste the talents of John Travolta and Robin Williams? Why did these actors sign up for this mess? I can usually find redeeming qualities in a movie but this movie is just a mess of - dare I say it - epic proportions.

The plot is inane as it is confusing. It's a story about a father taking care of his kids (generic as can be!) but with odd slapstick that I swear reaches a surreal level in how utterly absurd the situations become. I realized this in a scene where they take the kids to Charlie's (Travolta) apartment which has a "no kids rule." An old woman spots them and suddenly a siren goes off as if there were an air strike. Why? Because the plot says so! To top this off the film ends with a "Kids want a hero" plot that comes out of nowhere, and I do mean NOWHERE that involves Robin Williams in a jetpack that can't help but remind me of Schwarzenegger in 'Jingle All The Way' (that is NOT a good sign).

There is no question in anybody's mind that John Travolta hit his lowest point with 'Battlefield Earth', but this has to be the worst I've ever seen Robin Williams! Robin Williams has had lots of ups and downs in his career, and I know the Academy Award winning actor/comedian has been in some bad movies, but this is a new low for him. Why? Because to be honest, Robin Williams is clearly not having fun with this movie! Good grief, him and Travolta seem to be trying, but they also seem well aware that the material isn't funny. Williams seems tired. Anyone who knows anything about Williams should know his approach to comedy is anything but reserved. If John Travolta can't even look like he's having a good time with his own kids as the children leads then that also raises some serious issues.

This movie is a confused bunch of clichés with no discernable plot and two talented leads who aren't having any fun. There are far better family comedies out there and this one is to be avoided. Ignore this dribble as I'm sure Travolta and Williams are already doing.

This movie, Old Dogs, is two best friends and business partners, who are about to make it big with a business deal with a Japanese company. They are suddenly surprised when one of them is confronted with the children from a one-night stand. This throws their life and plans into chaos as promises are made and broken, hearts are broken and mended, and everything ends up alright in the end. Falling into the comedy genre and starring Robin Williams, I was expecting more laughs than what the movie provided. And the few laughs that were given seem too scripted; especially in the scenes with the children. Robin Williams is known for his spontaneity, and there was very little of it in this film. John Travolta seems out of place in this comedy also. Overall, an OK movie that luckily is only 1.5 hours long.

I am always on the lookout for a movie that has good clean fun for the whole family. We look for movies that the little people in our family can enjoy as well as the big people. When I revieiwed Old Dogs, I had concept in mind as the jacket clearly states - "Fun for the Whole Family."

Synopsis: Dan (Robin Williams) and his best friend and business partner Charlie (John Travolta) are on the verge of the biggest deal in the history of their sports marketing firm when their lives are turned upside down by a surprise visit from Dan's ex-wife Vicki (Kelly Preston). Vicki has big news for Dan--their ever-so-brief liaison produced twins Zach (Conner Rayburn) and Emily (Ella Bleu Travolta), now seven-years-old and in need of a dad to keep an eye on them for two weeks. With only high-living playboy Charlie for support, Dan's bumbling attempts at "on the job training" in fatherhood result in a series of disastrously funny exploits that lead him to a new understanding of what really matters in life. Featuring an extraordinary cast of comedy purebreds including Seth Green, Matt Dillon and Lori Loughlin, Old Dogs will have audiences rolling over and begging for more.

My Opinion: This movie was hilarious and almost too much at times. This would not have been my favorite kind of movie as the comedy bordered on just plain dumb at times. However, the last time I said that about a movie, my brother thought it was great. My husband who also viewed it with me found that the majority of the humor was over the top but towards the end, he was glued and dying of laughter. The movie has a sweet story of a father getting to know his children for the first time and the sacrifices he must make to get to know them.

There were times when the humor was not appropriate for young children and they might question what the actors were talking about. Overall my husband and I would give this movie a B rating. He would probably watch again but I don't know as I would have my two year old watch it.

I wanted to see the movie because I am a fan of Robin Williams and John Travolta. While there were some funny things in the movie for the most part I found it predictable.

The main storyline is that Charlie (Travolta) and Dan (Williams) have been friends and business partners for 30 years. Right before a big deal Dan finds out a woman he impulsively married 7 years before wants to see him. She tells him that she had his twins that he has to take care of for two weeks because she is going to jail.

There were some funny scenes, but the thing that would take me out of the movie was that Kelly Preston was playing Dans wife and Ella Bleu Travolta was one of the twins. Overall I think kids would love it.

Robin Williams and John Travolta really showed a clean side of comedy in this movie. Frankly, after reading the "one star" reviews I was somewhat shocked that some did not find this movie funny! I ordered the DVD for my parents and am looking forward for them to view and provide their input. I highly recommend it for the whole family! It's really hard to find good clean comedy movies today!

Two great actors... what went wrong?

Except for the part when their pills are all mixed up and they have some very funny side-effects, the movie is just plain boring.

Nothing is really defined... so you just don't feel it. You don't get to really care about the relationship between the guys, the feelings Dan has for this woman he met, the feelings he has about his kids... everything is just kind of superficial and every separate story has no depth to it.

Disappointing. We expected something better.