102 Dalmatians

MPAA Rating: G

Entertainment: +4

Content: +2

Dipstick, one of the puppies from the 1996 hit, 101 DALMATIANS, now owned by probation officer Chloe Simon (Alice Evans), has three puppies of his own. And three years of behavioral conditioning has turned evil, dog-napping, fashion designer Cruella DeVil (Glenn Close) into a dog's best friend. She even saves the 2nd Chance dog shelter, run by Kevin Shepherd (Ioan Gruffudd), from financial ruin. But Chloe, as her probation officer, is skeptical of Cruella's new found puppy love. However, she's also attracted to dog-loving Kevin. When her conditioning suddenly reverses, Cruella teams with French furrier Jean Pierre Le Pelt (Gerard DePardieu) to complete her dream of a Dalmatian coat. But, alterations mean 102 Dalmatian puppies, including Dipstick's three, will be needed. Only Oddball, rejected because of her still spotless coat, has a chance of rescuing her siblings. But she has the help of Waddlesworth (voiced by Eric Idle), a slightly demented parrot that thinks he's a dog. A treat for the whole family, 102 DALMATIANS should be a howling success.

In the tradition of classic Disney animated features, this live-action sequel contains very little objectionable material. Of course, the animals are treated like people and given human characteristics, like a conversing parrot that translates 'dog' for people. Bad language and sexual content is almost totally avoided, although when Oddball is given a sweater, the parrot jokes about her having no pants and children should 'avert your eyes.' Like a live cartoon, lots of slapstick falls, dog bites and other potentially injurious actions fill the screen as inept criminals are outsmarted by the animals. Ms Close should be commended for her good nature as she's treated to the messy process of becoming a human frosted cake. Because it's live action, younger children may have to be reminded the cartoon-type violence isn't real. But 102 DALMATIANS can be a fun outing for the whole family.

Preview Reviewer: Paul Bicking
Distributor: Buena Vista (Disney), 500 S Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91521

Summary
The following categories contain objective listings of film content which contribute to the subjective numeric Content ratings posted to the left and on the Home page.

Crude Language: None

Obscene Language: None

Profanity: None

Violence: Many times - Moderate slapstick (Red paint thrown on furrier, flower pot thrown, head bumped, door closed on hand, dog bites men, fall puts head in toilet, cart runs over hands, cars wreck, men struggle/ thrown through window, woman goes through cake machine)

Sex: None

Nudity: Near nudity - few times (model wears fur bikini, low cut dress emphasizes cleavage)

Sexual Dialogue/Gesture: Few times (Parrot says dog has no underwear, man's fur pants have tiger head at crotch)

Drugs: None

Other: Comment about behavioral control using shock treatment, dog slobbers on people, man says 'dogs are people, too,' man encourages trusting others, French accent makes young dogs sound like 'poopies'

Running Time: 101 minutes
Intended Audience: Pre-school up

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