CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG

Based upon the children's book, CLIFFORD THE BIG RED DOG tells the story of red colored, 10-foot tall Clifford and his owner Emily. While her mother (and no mention of the father) is in Chicago for work, she's left in the care of her bumbling Uncle Casey. While walking to school one morning, Emily convinces her Uncle Casey to stop by a rescue animal tent that's set up on her school's campus. She soon falls in love with the young pup, who at this point is a normal pups size. However, her Uncle knowing her mother would never allow or forgive him and her daughter for bringing in an animal while she's away at work, they leave the tent empty handed. That is until Emily returns home from school to find Clifford hiding in her backpack. She convinces her Uncle to allow the dog to spend the night before returning him in the morning. However, when she wakes up, some magic happens as Clifford is the size we all know and love him for. Shenanigans quickly ensue as Clifford is still a pup: playful, naive, and doesn't realize his own size or strength yet. Once spotted, the villain of the picture sees the larger-than-life sized dog as an opportunity for his food creation business; hoping to harness Clifford's DNA to unlock the mysteries that are preventing them from achieving their goal of feeding the planet. I have to admit I had a soft spot for this going in as I grew up on the books and this, thankfully, did not disappoint. It's a beautiful, heartfelt, and fun family movie, without being too cheesy for the kids or talking down to the adults either. I'm usually not much for child actors but 14-year-old star Darby Camp puts together a great performance for an actor her age. Keep an eye on her as she could be on the rise. I had a blast with this and would definitely take another walk around the block with Clifford should they franchise this property out. 7/10