The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		3.0
Video		1.5
Audio		2.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		2.0

The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie Review

The truth hurts: this catalogue title's Blu-ray release stinks.

Reviewed by Martin Liebman April 17, 2012

So, which character is the dog, and which is the cat? What's the truth, and what's the lie? Does this movie purr or snarl? Does it matter? The Truth About Cats and Dogs aims precisely for the Romantic Comedy lover by painting a picture of deliberately mistaken identity, which allows for the man to a fall in love with the real woman, the person on the inside, not just the pretty outer shell. The picture never reaches new ground, but it's a comfortable little jaunt into oft-traversed territory. The picture will wrap itself around genre fans like a cuddly and warm purring cat. It's not a new sensation, but it feels good. It's the kind of movie into which one may retreat to wash away the bad and remember that life has a way of working things out, of making things happen, of bringing in positive change from those places least expected. Director Michael Lehmann's (Heathers) The Truth About Cats and Dogs doesn't rework its genre, but it's a fine representation of all the genre stands for.

Well gosh, this transfer certainly isn't doing my confidence any favors. Geesh!

Abby (Janeane Garofalo) hosts a radio call-in show called The Truth About Cats and Dogs. She fields questions from callers who want to know more about caring for their pet and strengthening the bond between man and animal. One day, she receives a call from Brian (Ben Chaplin), a man who's trying to settle a dog and remove roller skates from its paws. Abby succeeds in helping him calm the animal and she encourages him to adopt it. He does so, and figures out a way to pursue Abby, hoping to form a bond beyond their initial call. When Brian asks to meet Abby face to face, she panics, and describes herself not as Abby but rather as Noelle (Uma Thurman), her next-door neighbor who's supermodel pretty and an aspiring television newscaster. Brian ends up meeting Noelle, believing her to be Abby. But when Abby sees Brian and figures out he's a real, charming, sincere guy and not a crazy talk show hostess stalker, she wants nothing more than to try a relationship with him on for size, but she needs to figure out how to tell him the truth that she's not Noelle and Noelle isn't Abby.

The Truth About Cats and Dogs plays through a serviceable Romantic Comedy premise, one that gets around to the point pretty much from the outset as it contrasts the "person" and the "voice" against the "looks." As Brian becomes further enamored with the person, he pays less and less attention to her appearance. The contrast between the easily-visible outside and the more difficult-to-see inside are made clear throughout the movie. Brian is a photographer. He's trained to look on the outside, to accentuate it, glamorize it, make it sexy, but is the only character, early on, capable of seeing beyond the exterior. Abby -- a pretty girl in her own right -- doesn't have the old "face made for radio" thing, but she lacks self-confidence, is put down at the cosmetics counter for her ragged skin, and hides behind a lie because she cannot face her own fears. Noelle is an aspiring television newscaster, making her clearly someone unafraid of the spotlight and the scrutiny that comes with it. She's also afraid to eat, symbolizing both her desire to keep the outside looking good but afraid of changing anything on the inside, too. All three characters work in some form or fashion in a profession that accentuates their personalities. They just need to figure out that they are more than the figurative and literal face they put forward if they are to get to where they truly want to be in life.

The Truth About Cats and Dogs might be pretty easy to sort out, which may be seen as a negative, but the film is wonderfully cast, with each of the leads really getting into character and making the movie work beyond its everyday -- although admittedly well-put-together -- storyline. Janeane Garofalo's at the top of her game, expertly and seamlessly playing a dedicated radio hostess who absolutely melts into the part. She's smart and funny and nicely balances the characteristics necessary in making the part work, even if she's not really unattractive, which seems to be what the part really calls for. Still, she's not the "doll" that Uma Thurman plays. Thurman handles the part well, playing a tall and lean looker with class and charm. Her part is the most challenging, as she's really only meant to play a character who's but skin-deep, yet she gives some internal shape to an otherwise flat eye-candy character. Ben Chaplin merrily goes along for the ride and does well whether falling in love with a person or fighting back his emotions when he discovers the truth. The cast lends an air of sweetness to the movie even when the script falls a little short. It's not the perfect movie by any stretch of the imagination, but The Truth About Cats and Dogs is a thoughtful and breezy little flick that's better than the average genre clunker.

The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Truth About Cats & Dogs plops onto Blu-ray with a poor 1080p transfer that wouldn't look all that great on DVD. The image is littered with speckles and pops and scratches, not to a distracting amount, but definitely enough to notice. Detailing is minimal and clarity is unimpressive. The image appears constantly hazy and undefined. Distance shots are smeary, medium shots fuzzy, and close-ups barely acceptable. Forget about complex facial and clothing details. Just as disappointing, colors are dim. The image lacks any sort of vibrancy or punch. Flesh tones are stale, and blacks stumble around between too dark and too bright. The image appears scrubbed over and left for dead. This is a prime example of a movie simply plopped onto Blu-ray with no thought or care. It looks terrible, and it's amazing the engineers even bothered to add a lossless soundtrack.

The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

The Truth About Cats & Dogs does indeed offer up a lossless soundtrack, of the Dolby TrueHD 5.1 variety to be exact. It's better than the picture quality on the numerical scale of 0-5, but that doesn't really mean much. No, this is a serviceable, generic soundtrack that offers listeners elements that play with a shallow, low volume feel. The opening music lacks energy, but it does offer decent clarity, acceptable spacing, and a suitable low end. The same may be said of music through the rest of the movie. Listeners will note light ambience, lingering primarily across the front (the rear channels are never really used to noticeable effect). Slight atmosphere in the radio station offices, nighttime crickets, or gently rolling waters in a scene near the end tell listeners where the action is taking place, but little more. Dialogue is satisfactory, playing evenly through the middle-front and with sufficient clarity. This is certainly no high-end presentation, but it gets the job done and outshines the poor picture quality.

The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

This is one of those "pop and play" discs. No menu -- top or pop-up -- is included, and of course there are no extras, either.

The Truth About Cats & Dogs Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Truth About Cats & Dogs isn't the perfect Romantic Comedy, but genre fans will find an above-average little flick that's witty, well-written, and nicely acted. It's predictable but charming, an easy watch and a spirit-lifter when things look grim. It espouses goodness and kindness and highlighting the inside without dismissing the outside. It's a shame Anchor Bay's Blu-ray release isn't better. This is reminiscent of the awful Blu-ray titles released by other studios from which fans expect less. The Truth About Cats & Dogs features substandard video, a mediocre lossless soundtrack, and no extras -- not even a menu. Fans should only buy if they don't own the movie on DVD, and even then only when the store is almost giving it away.