Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties Movie Review

Some movies don't require a review. Watch a commercial for Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties and you know what to expect: An obese, lasagna-loving cat with a ton of attitude, many bad jokes, and Breckin Meyer and Jennifer Love Hewitt (now, sadly, in the Mom haircut phase of her career) generating the sparks of two ice cubes rubbing together. The movie is what you expect, meaning it's a hoot for the slackjawed fans of the comic strip cat and a colossal waste of time for everyone else.

The sequel to the abysmal Garfield: The Movie picks up with Garfield's owner Jon Arbuckle (Meyer) on the verge of proposing to veterinarian Liz (Hewitt). Garfield doesn't like this plan one bit, so he sabotages the special night. Regardless, there's not much to undo, as Liz bolts after announcing she has to travel to London for business. Jon, bummed that he missed his chance, flies to London so he can pop the question, while Garfield, with canine nemesis Odie in tow, sneaks aboard the plane.

London is a delight for Jon, who reunites with Liz (who wasn't moving to London), but Odie and Garfield are confined to a hotel room. Tired of being cooped up, they roam the London streets where Garfield is mistakenly identified as a missing wealthy cat named Prince and transported to a huge castle. Prince looks exactly like Garfield and is picked up seconds later by an unsuspecting Jon.

Prince owns that huge castle thanks to the benevolence of its deceased owner, and is the target of the angry Dargis (Billy Connolly), who wants the castle so he can build a lavish resort. Dargis is next in line for the estate, so he's frustrated when Prince -- who he had taken out for a "picnic" -- returns home. For Garfield, it's a chance to enjoy a lavish lifestyle to which he's always been entitled.

For the audience, it gives them a chance to behold a truly unoriginal outing. It lifts heavily from The Prince and the Pauper, Babe, and Fawlty Towers. (Connolly, by far the best part of the movie, is a dead ringer here for John Cleese.) The script presents "the animals are people" concept with no humor. Anyone want to see animals making lasagna or sporting party hats at a pool party? And Garfield-voicing Bill Murray, who's built a sterling reputation for playing angst-ridden and antic with ease, inexplicably falls in line with the this whole uninspired mess... for a second time.

It's made with horse meat.