'Garfield' makes nearly purr-fect transition from comic to film

By Jack Garner
Gannett News Service

GARFIELD THE MOVIE (PG) Two and One-Half Stars (Fair-to-Good) America's favorite cat has made the leap from the comic strips to celluloid with most of his arrogance and attitude in place. And it doesn't hurt that he sounds just like Bill Murray. Pete Hewitt directs. 20th Century Fox, 87 minutes.

"Garfield the Movie" combines computer animation and live-action to tell the story of Jim Davis' lasagna-loving feline in his feature-film debut. All the other animals and all the humans in the film are real; only Garfield is a computer-generated creation.

Yet, surprisingly, the effect is seamless. Except for the big bulging eyes that are Garfield's exaggerated trademark, the pudgy cat seems as real as Breckin Meyer, who plays his owner Jon, Jennifer Love Hewitt, who plays the veterinarian (and Jon's love interest) and the 15 cats, 35 dogs, 30 rats and one mouse who are Garfield's various friends and foes in the animal kingdom.

Hard-core Garfield fans may find objectionable differences between the film and the comic strip, but for this only occasional reader, it seems an accurate reflection of the character that's dominated 2,600 newspaper comics pages for about a quarter century. I, for example, have never hung a Garfield suction-cup toy on my car window, but I can appreciate the film's sight gag that references that strange phenomenon.

"Garfield the Movie" details the start of two sets of relationships:

• The first is a contentious rivalry for owner affection between Garfield and the newly arrived pet dog, the easy-going, slow-witted Odie, who is played by a real dog (since he never speaks, only has to stand occasionally on his hind legs, and spends much time chasing his own tail.)
• The second, and far less interesting, is between a man and woman. Like the Jon in the comic strip, this Jon is also terminally shy and nearly incapable of securing a date. But here he strikes up a friendship with Garfield's vet, and she takes the initiative in jump-starting a romance.

The story revolves around Garfield's efforts to rescue Odie after he falls into the hands of a nefarious animal trainer. To the film's credit, the cat maintains his devil-may-care attitude, even while pulling off the rescue.

The result is a modest family film that'll be catnip for kids, with just enough Garfield 'tude (and Murray wit) to keep adults from scratching the furniture.

Rated PG, mild profanity.