When the news broke that Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt would lend his voice to the title character in The Super Mario Bros. Movie, the response was mostly negative.
The actor ultimately proved his detractors wrong and, despite mixed reviews, the 2023 release went on to earn over $1.3 billion for Illumination at the worldwide box office. Can The Garfield Movie find a similar level of success this weekend?
While that remains to be seen, the first wave of reviews isn't particularly kind. In fact, as we write this, The Garfield Movie has a disappointing 52% on Rotten Tomatoes.
That's a "Rotten" score, but The Super Mario Bros. Movie has only 59% and families don't tend to pay as much attention to these scores as regular filmgoers. Looking through the verdicts, however, it seems Pratt may have phoned in his performance here as, unlike his previous animated projects, the actor is taking much of the blame for why The Garfield Movie doesn't work.
Check out a sampling of reviews for the movie below (via Toonado.com).
The rudimentary animation does the film no favors, nor does the lead vocal turn by Pratt, who strangely has become one of Hollywood’s go-to animation stars with Onward, The Lego Movie and its sequel and The Super Mario Bros. Movie. His colorless vocal work here pales in comparison with his predecessors Bill Murray, who voiced the character in the two live-action movies, and Lorenzo Music, who played it brilliantly for so many years on television. The strange result is a Garfield without attitude. - The Hollywood Reporter
The Garfield Movie applies some nice animation to an annoying all-ages comedy of product placement, phone jokes, and daddy issues. [4/10] - IGN
Is this a kid’s movie or a commercial? And if it’s the latter, a commercial for what exactly? Certainly not more movies like this. I already know about Olive Garden’s breadsticks. I’d like to know more about funny, sweet, smart family-centric features, the kind the multiplex is so desperately lacking. Call it a case of the Mondays, but this kitty needs to go way back to the drawing board. [C] - IndieWire
The Garfield Movie is adorable, but it is more of a kids movie than a family movie. The majority of the humor is geared toward a younger audience, and the plot is made simple so that kids can understand it without having to ask questions. - Mama's Geeky
The Garfield Movie may be as disposable as one of those numbered paperbacks that ex-kids of a certain age may fondly recall from their Scholastic book orders, but it approximates their sense of fun, too. - Paste Magazine
"You will not be disappointed!" promises Pratt at the onset. We categorically beg to differ... [2/5] - Total Film
'The Garfield Movie' serves as a bleak reminder that the future of much children’s entertainment made in this country is to become colorful advertisements. It’s also a terrible Monday of a film for the orange tabby whose storied laziness over nearly 50 years has certainly earned him better. - Variety
Mark Dindal’s film is unlikely to be hailed as a family movie classic, and as animated interpretations of “Garfield” go, it lags way behind the classic Halloween and Christmas specials or the 'Garfield and Friends' TV series. But it’s a heck of a lot better than most of his other 21st century adventures, and a lot less hate-able than Mondays. - The Wrap
Garfield (voiced by Chris Pratt), the world-famous, Monday-hating, lasagna-loving indoor cat, is about to have a wild outdoor adventure! After an unexpected reunion with his long-lost father – scruffy street cat Vic (voiced by Samuel L. Jackson) – Garfield and his canine friend Odie are forced from their perfectly pampered life into joining Vic in a hilarious, high-stakes heist.