Garfield: The Movie parents guide

Garfield: The Movie Parent Guide

Overall B

Fat, furry and full of lasagna, Garfield the Cat (voiced by Bill Murray) thinks he's the king of his domicile until his owner Jon (Breckin Meyer) has the audacity to adopt a little dog named Odie.

Release date June 10, 2004

Violence B-
Sexual Content B+
Profanity A-
Substance Use A

Why is Garfield: The Movie rated PG? The MPAA rated Garfield: The Movie PG for some off-color elements

Run Time: 78 minutes

Parent Movie Review

Let me be up front. I’m not a cat person. Despite the fact I often feel frustrated with the slobbering, shedding mutt at our house, I know where I stand with him. A dog after all, is what he is. Cats on the other hand are sneaky and, quite frankly, make me worry that my life is being subtlety sabotaged.

If Garfield: The Movie did anything for me, it was only to confirm my feelings about felines. Surely, if any cat were to be crowned the King of Connivery, it would have to be Garfield (voiced by Bill Murray). Fat, furry and full of lasagna, he is the master of manipulation.

Secure in his kingdom, Garfield tolerates his owner’s repeat visits to the local vet. Supremely astute, he knows Jon (Breckin Meyer) just wants a chance to check out Liz (Jennifer Love Hewitt), the veterinarian he’s had a crush on since high school. Unfortunately, Jon doesn’t have the nerve to ask her out.

Then Liz gives him the perfect reason to see her more often. Suggesting that he adopt a little dog from the clinic, she offers to accompany them both on outings and romps in the park.

Jon may be smitten with Odie, but Garfield couldn’t be more annoyed with the shaggy intruder who gets a warm spot on the bed while he is relinquished to a mattress on the floor. Suddenly, he, the kingpin of pets, is playing second fiddle to a pooch.

However, things begin to look up for Garfield when a celebrity judge notices Odie at a dog show. Happy Chapman (Stephen Tobolowsky) is a disgruntled pet food spokesman who peddles kitty kibble. When he sees the dancing Odie perform at center stage, dollar signs start to float before his eyes. Surely this is his ticket to fame. Dognapping the dancing pup, he packs his bags and heads for the big city.

Now the hefty kitty has to choose between rescuing Odie and relishing the chance to sleep solo on the couch.

While the original Garfield comic was aimed at adult cat lovers, this film is pure Saturday morning cartoon fare. Padded with ample credits, cartoon violence and a couple of musical interludes (including a clip that features a scantily clad dancer gyrating on stage), this film’s script labors to fill a mere 80 minutes. The predictable plot and run-of-the-mill bad guy also won’t inspire parents to fork out the cash to see these capers.

Although Garfield doesn’t cough up any major hairballs, he probably won’t leave your kids purring for more by the end of this film either.

Starring Breckin Meyer, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Bill Murray. Running time: 78 minutes. Theatrical release June 10, 2004. Updated

Garfield: The Movie Parents' Guide

Happy Chapman uses animals in his television segments to sell pet food. When is it okay to use real animals in TV or movies, and when is it animal cruelty?

Garfield discovers that treating others with kindness pays off. How do Lewis and Garfield help one another? Who else helps Garfield?

Home Video

The most recent home video release of Garfield: The Movie movie is June 6, 2006. Here are some details…

Capitalizing on the publicity opportunity, Garfield the Movie pounces onto DVD one week before his sequel Garfield’s a Tale of Two Kitties howls into theaters. If you are a big fan of the fat cat, then feast ‘til your full on the bonus features of this 2-disc Perrrfect Collector’s Edition. Tidbits include the documentaries Garfield: Bringing the Cat to Life, Garfield’s Presentation Reel and Pick of the Litter: The History of Garfield. If you’d rather frolic with the feline, check out a selection of games (like Find Odie and Lasagna From Heaven), piece together ten jigsaw puzzles, or draw and print your own strip with the Garfield Comic Creator. You can also take a peek behind-the-scenes at how the professional created the animated star, check out seventeen deleted scenes and catch the Baha Men’s music video Holla! Audio tracks are available in English (5.1 Dolby Surround), Spanish (Dolby Surround) and French (Dolby Surround), with subtitles in English, Spanish and French.

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Garfield isn’t the only character to feel misplaced when someone new comes along. Woody the Cowboy loses his place atop the bed when Andy gets a new action figure for his birthday in Toy Story. Fur flies when the family pets fight for world supremacy in Cats & Dogs. In All Dogs Go to Heaven 2, a devilish cat disguised as a dog tries to outwit an unsuspecting mutt into making a pact.