"The Secret Life of Pets" review

The parts of self tail chasing and curtain clawing that you don't get to catch.

Illumination Entertainment occupies this odd space in cinematic animation nuzzled right between Disney/Pixar and Dreamworks.

Their technical prowess and actor talent pool prevent them from being as bad as the latter studio’s projects can get on a bad day but don’t have any actual writers to achieve what even Dreamworks can be capable of when they take a moment to actually try.

The result has thus far been a string of box office success built upon 4 movies that evidently know how to grab the attention of kids as well as they do piss on Dr. Seuss’s grave, produce irritatingly calculated corporate mascots for the masses, be insipidly annoying, and a combination of all of the above.

The debut of their second original IP, “The Secret Life of Pets” follows Max and Duke, two Manhattan dogs turned new roommates sharing the same owner that get along like water and oil. Their bickering throws them into urban danger that separates them from their home, forcing them to work together to find their way home with the help of their friends, seeking them out for rescue. If that premise sounds familiar, I did mention that this studio’s strongpoint has never been writing, right?

Illumination Entertainment has managed to consistently coast by on the barest minimum of effort, producing films for an audience that hasn’t quite learned how to be demanding yet.

Their stories have always been less about weaving strong narratives and more about using their acting talent involved with some admittedly dedicated animators to create enough energetically entertaining visual gags and punch lines to fill out a theatrical running time and “The Secret Life of Pets” is no exception.

What does make it an exception to “The Lorax” and all 3 “Despicable Me” movies is that this one actually doesn’t suck.

Make no mistakes, this one isn’t earning any Oscar buzz anytime soon and as far as great animated films go this year, “Zootopia” still has 2016 on lock and possibly even beats out anything planned for next year before they even rear their heads.

“The Secret Life of Pets” is shallow, straight forward, mildly crass, and occasionally awkward but a comedy is only as good as its humor and an animated movie is only as good as what its format is being used for and this one actually has a decent bit to offer.

For starters, the voice cast is all on point. The delivery and chemistry that these people all give makes the material that they have to work with go miles and scares me to think of what this could have been in lesser hands. From Louis C.K.’s earnestly blunt excitement to Lake Bell’s spot on portrayal of the feline inability to care in the slightest to Kevin Hart’s manic ranting and raving reminiscent of something MC Chris would do on “Aqua Teen Hunger Force,” everybody’s efforts pay off in the best of ways.

Of particular praise is Jenny Slate, who is now on my comedy watch list for nailing the difficult to capture balance between good natured intent and blissful ignorance that make loveable ditz characters loveable and funny, providing the film with some of its absolute highlights.

There’s just a charm to these characters that keeps the movie afloat at its best and worst moments, helped by designs that straddle the line just right between realistic frame of reference and the stylized cartoon reality they’re clearly aiming for.

The animators also have comedic timing down for the most part, knowing just how long to make a joke last and right when to drop a joke that isn’t working, mitigating the irritation that can sink in after coming across a miss, of which there are a substantial amount in the rapid fire comedy hour and a half the film is intent on delivering. There aren’t exactly any hard belly laughs to be found but things remain consistently amusing overall.

Honestly, the best way that I can describe the final product of this movie is “accidentally good.”

All of the Illumination staples of stock animated film writing are there and they haven’t become any less problematic. Hell, there reaches a point in the third act in which Max and Duke go through the standard “I thought we were friends” pre-climax break up featuring a revelation that should have tugged on heartstrings harder than any other animated movie this year but is almost laughable in execution due to how blatant it is that it’s sole purpose for existing is that it was a part of the plot map that road trip movies of this ilk take.

The formula is never unnoticeable but when the jokes start to dry up, you really do start to feel the film’s stock nature and length, which almost feels 10 minutes too long despite clocking in at a breezy hour and a half.

Where “The Secret Life of Pets” works however, it more or less outweighs its own negatives.

Like a coasting B- level student that could do better if pushed harder, this one doesn’t aim high but at least cares and respects audiences enough to put up a decent effort and knows its place. Kids will be entertained, adults will be mildly amused. No harm, no foul.

6 Pomeranian Jack Bauer interrogations out of 10