If You Aim Low, You Can't Disappoint

"Marmaduke", the film, stars Owen Wilson as the voice of Marmaduke. The Winslows are led by the family's father, Phil (Lee Pace). He's been offered a job that will transplant the clan from Kansas to the O.C., as they refer to it here. His wife, Debbie (Judy Greer), and their kids and their cat (George Lopez) accompany Marmaduke on this relocation adventure.

Phil's new boss, Don Twombly (William H. Macy), is a bit of an eccentric who runs his dog food company with an overemphasis on the creature comforts of his four-legged friends. Macy could have slept through this role but, to his credit, he attempts to make his character three-dimensional. Every other human character is barely two-dimensional.

But let's face it, this is not a character piece or an acting tour de force. This is a vehicle designed to entertain the kiddies while teaching "valuable moral lessons" to the little tykes. What's right, what's wrong. Family is important. Treat others with respect, and so forth.

"Marmaduke" doesn't aim very high so it really can't fail. It's going to appeal to the little ones and has enough humor in it to keep the parents awake (barely). The first 20 minutes is actually funny. After that, it's mostly tug-at-the-heartstrings heavy, with a touch of the required silliness. I can't tell you that I loved it, nor can I tell you that I hated it. What I can tell you is that it will fade from your brain almost instantaneously, assuming that any of it sticks for more than a fleeting moment in the first place.