“Dog Man” is based on the illustrated children’s book series of the same title. The first “Dog Man” book by Dav Pilkey was published in 2016. The series has 13 books. The most recent was published in December 2024.

The film’s title, “Dog Man,” is somewhat misleading. Dog Man is not the star of the movie.

Dog Man doesn’t speak, anthropomorphically, anyway. Dog Man barks. Dog Man’s vocal effects are by Peter Hastings, who directs the animation feature.

Dog Man’s arch-nemesis is Petey (voiced by Pete Davidson), who terrorizes Ohkay City. Petey would be the first to tell you that he’s the “world’s most evilest cat.” Davidson (TV’s “Saturday Night Live”) is down for the snark in voicing the character.

Petey seems to have more screen time than Dog Man. The real star of “Dog Man” is Li’l Petey (Lucas Hopkins Calderon), a kitten clone of Petey. Calderon is apparently in his movie voice-acting debut. He’s terrific as Li’l Petey.

The scenes that Li’l Petey are in, including those with Petey and Dog Man, provide the most enjoyable moments. The scene where Dog Man and Li’l Petey play a boogie-woogie duet on an upright piano is delightful.

The storyline is supremely silly. The plot is right out of a superhero movie.

The frequently hip, flip and funny dialogue should please adults.

“Go and arrest Petey,” says the Chief to Dog Man, adding, “And I don’t care if it takes a montage.”

There’s even a Philadelphia-centric joke. A vehicle crashes on top of a sign that states ”Philly Cheese Steaks.” Says the TV newscaster, “They’ve fallen on top of that gyro.” The Cheese Steak restaurant owner says, “Yo, it’s a cheese steak!”

The character voices are great, including: Lil Rel Howery (Chief, the police chief), Isla Fisher (Sarah Hatoff, a TV news reporter), Ricky Gervais (Flippy the fish) and Stephen Root (Grampa, Petey’s father).

The animation, which makes “Dog Man” worth seeing, is unusual. The characters are fully, if simply drawn. Many of the faces have vertical slits for eyes. The eyebrows look as though they were drawn on with black Sharpies.

Scene backgrounds are fully-realized with enough detail for a sense of time and place. Several frenetic chase scenes are innovative, with forced perspective and camera angles not unlike those in a live-action film. The animation is bright and splashy.

Director Peter Hastings (Primetime Emmy Award winner, Children’s Animated Program, “Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness,” 2014), in his animation feature film directorial debut, has a nice mix of character-driven and action scenes. Hastings is a native of Haverford, Delaware and Montgomery counties.

Hastings co-wrote the screenplay with Dav Pilkey (screenwriter, “Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie,” 2017). The screenplay riffs on a dog’s obsession with chasing squirrels. The film includes child-like comic book drawings made by Li’l Petey.

The lively orchestral soundtrack is composed by Tom Howe.

“Dog Man” in movie theaters is preceded by a film short, “Little Lies and Alibis,” featuring The Bad Guys characters.

“Dog Man” is entertaining, fun and heart-warming. “Love isn’t something you feel. It’s something you do,” says Li’l Petey.

“Dog Man” can be enjoyed by young and old alike.

“Dog Man,” PG (Parental Guidance Suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children. Parents urged to give “parental guidance.” May contain some material parents might not like for their young children.) for some action and rude humor; Genre: Action, Comedy, Animation: Run time: 1 hour, 29 minutes. Distributed by Universal Pictures.

Credit Readers Anonymous: “Dog Man” songs include “Supa Good!!!” by James Brown, “I Got You (I Feel Good),” and Yung Gravy, and “Love is a Verb” by John Mayer. The end credits include animated children’s style drawings.

At The Movies: “Dog Man” was seen in the Dolby Cinema at AMC, AMC Center Valley 16.

Theatrical Movie Domestic Weekend Box Office, March 7-9: “Mickey 17,” starring Robert Pattinson and directed by Bong Joon-Ho, Oscar winner for “Parasite,” opened at No. 1 with $19.1 million in 3,807 theaters, displacing “Captain America: Brave New World” at No. 1 after three weeks, dropping to No. 2 with $8.5 million in 3,480 theaters, $176.5 million, four weeks.

3. “Last Breath” dropped one place, $4.2 million in 3,090 theaters, $14.6 million, two weeks. 4. “The Monkey” dropped one place, $3.9 million in 2,955 theaters, $31 million, three weeks. 5. “Paddington in Peru” dropped one place, $3.8 million in 3,085 theaters, $36.9 million, four weeks. 6. “Dog Man” dropped one place, $3.5 million in 2,753 theaters, $88.7 million, six weeks. 7. “Anora,” with five Oscar wins, moved up 15 places, $1.8 million in 1,938 theaters, $18.4 million, 21 weeks. 8. “Mufasa: The Lion King” moved down two places, $1.7 million in 1,460 theaters, $250.4 million, 12 weeks. 9. “Rule Breakers,” a fictional account about educating girls in Afghanistan, $1.5 million in 2,044 theaters, opening. 10. “Night of the Zoopocalypse,” $1 million, number of theaters unavailable, opening

Movie box office information from Box Office Mojo as of March 9 is subject to change.

Unreel, March 14:

“Black Bag,” R: Steven Soderbergh directs Michael Fassbender, Gustaf Skarsgård, Cate Blanchett and Pierce Brosnan in the Spy Thriller. An intelligence agent must choose between his wife, also a spy, and the nation.

“The Day the Earth Blew Up: A Looney Tunes Movie,” PG: Peter Browngardt directs the voice talents of Eric Bauza, Candi Milo, Peter MacNicol and Laraine Newman and the animation in the Science-Fiction Comedy. Porky and Daffy uncover a plot by an alien to control their town. It’s the first “Looney Tunes” feature-length movie.

“The Last Supper,” PG-13: Mauro Borrelli directs Robert Knepper, James Faulkner, Jamie Ward, Henry Garrett and Nathalie Rapti Gomez in the History Drama. The Biblical story is told.

Movie opening information from Internet Movie Database as of March 9 is subject to change.

Three Popcorn Boxes out of Five Popcorn Boxes