Strays (2023)

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  ScreenZealots

  4 / 10

  The one-note adult comedy “Strays” is a movie that’s best evaluated in mathematical percentages. It’s 20% crude humor combined with 75% dead air with an eventual 5% of good material (a.k.a., the big payoff). What’s such a bummer is that while the hilarious (and believe it or not, heartwarming) ending is all you could ever hope for, the route the story takes to get there is borderline abysmal.
  
  Reggie (voice of Will Ferrell) is a scrappy little dog. He lives with his human best friend Doug (Will Forte), who is a total lowlife scumbag. Doug mistreats his canine companion and doesn’t even try to hide his hatred of the mutt. One day, Doug takes Reggie on a three hour drive into the heart of the city, where he abandons him on the street. Out in the world for the first time, Reggie befriends other dogs who show him the ropes, including the street smart Boston Terrier Bug (voice of Jamie Foxx), failed police dog Hunter the Great Dane (voice of Randall Park), and the posh pet Maggie (voice of Isla Fisher). Eventually, they help Reggie see Doug for the horrible person he really is, and the pup decides he wants to go back home so he cat bite off his owner’s penis.
  
  In terms of story, there isn’t a lot of depth. The humor leans heavily on the crass and lewd variety, and the majority of the jokes simply don’t work. The sky’s the limit in terms of potential, but writer Dan Perrault seems inept at penning winning gags. There are a few silly bits that will resonate with dog lovers, but most of the antics are either overly crass or grossly scatological.
  
  The voice talent is fine, and the actors have good timing and work well together. The dogs are cute. Part of the story is quite touching, especially when the film hits its message of giving “bad dogs” a chance to be part of the family. Yet none of these positive attributes can save the overall movie.
  
  “Strays” takes a promising idea for an adult-centered comedy and blows it by shooting for the lowest bar possible.
  
  By: Louisa Moore / SCREEN ZEALOTS

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