20th Century-Fox has released Garfield Gets Real, an all-new 3D CGI-animated feature film starring the laziest cat in the world. Featuring a clever, sometimes surprisingly sad script by Garfield creator Jim Davis, Garfield Gets Real doesn't pile on the jokes and laughs like previous incarnations of the cat, and its action-heavy plot plays too often like an elongated video game. Still, kids should enjoy the film, because Garfield is so adorable it usually doesn't matter what he's doing - kids love him anyway.

The story has Garfield (voiced by Frank Welker), fed up with living and working in his cartoon world, daring to explore the "real" world outside the funny papers. In Garfield's cartoon world, the newspaper comics are first created "live," with the cartoon characters acting out the various strips in a studio, where individual scenes are then photographed and then beamed by satellite to newspapers all over the world. After filming, the cartoon characters often gather in the studio's auditorium, and "watch" their performances via a special screen, which can see through the comic strips of any newspaper, so they can see their readers' reactions to the funnies (almost like a one-way mirror).

When Garfield decides to take advantage of a tear in the viewing screen, he's immediately sucked into the "real" world, where he now operates under normal laws of physics - unlike when he was a cartoon character. And along with those normal laws comes the realization that he's no longer working as a comic strip character; in the real world, the head of the syndications strip is searching for a replacement for Garfield. And unless somebody on the cartoon side can figure out a way to get Garfield back to his own world, he'll have to stay in the "real" world forever, separated from his friends.

For me at least, the animation was a key draw here for Garfield Gets Real. Utilizing two distinct animation styles for the cartoon and real worlds, Garfield and all the other cartoon characters get a noticeable black outline and flatter shadings and colorings to their designs in the cartoon world, while in the real world he's beautifully fleshed out, with quite good (for a direct-to-video release) 3D CGI effects. During the many action scenes in Garfield Gets Real, the effects are comparable with theatrical releases (Garfield swinging on a chandelier while a roaring fire engulfs a building is a stand-out), and there are some nice depth-of-focus shots with Garfield in the park.

And the basic premise of the film is handled nicely, with the hook of cartoon characters watching their readers via satellite - as well as Garfield's friends using the device to keep an eye on him - rendered in a clear, logical manner. The big problem I had with Garfield Gets Real is that obviously a lot of time was spent on making this fun framework look good, but Garfield the character seems to have gotten lost in the shuffle. I wasn't a fan at all of the two recent theatrical Garfield releases (although I thought Bill Murray was an inspired choice to do the vocal work), but at least those films really focused on the core appeal of Garfield: a lazy housecat who pretty much hates everybody. Here in Garfield Gets Real, too much of the story plays out like a video game, with Garfield's various set pieces (the dogs chasing Garfield, the chase through the burning building) coming off as merely advertising for the inevitable gaming tie-in.

Garfield doesn't seem to be so much fun here, either, acting more depressed than usual, and only showing a bit of energy during the final fade-out, when he executes a fun little dance. A couple of bright moments do pop up from time to time (the marvelously lyrical, funny dream sequence where Garfield, as slippery as a seal, cavorts and swims through the hot-dog-filled air, is charming), but overall, Garfield Gets Real is a bit of a downer. The old cartoon show, Garfield and Friends (please click here to read my review of that series) had far more zest and yocks to please Garfield fans.

The DVD:

The Video:
The anamorphically enhanced, 1.78:1 widescreen image for Garfield Gets Real is digital perfection, with bright, dazzling colors, a super-sharp image, and no compression issues or artifacting.

The Audio:
There's a surprisingly strong Dolby Digital English 5.1 Surround mix available (with most of the speaker action in the front), along with similar French and Spanish 5.1 mixes. Subtitles in English and Spanish are available, along with close-captions.

The Extras:
I was surprised at the amount of extras included in this straight-to-DVD release. First up is Pencils, Paws and Ink: Creating the Garfield Comic Strip, which gives a concise, fascinating look at how Davis creates the strip for newspapers today. It runs 5:41. Jim Davis: Raw & Un-Cat looks at the creator of the strip. It runs 7:04. The Animation Process, running 5:35, looks at what's involved with producing a cartoon via computer. Legends: Working Together, looks at the voice work of legend Frank Welker. It runs 1:50. Bloopers: Voices in our Heads is a collection of outtakes from the voice talents at work here. Finding Your Voice, running 6:05, looks at what's involved with the voice talent trying to find the characters within their delivery. And Animating from the Seoul, running 4:22, looks at what is involved with animating a cartoon, via computer link-up, between the United States and Korea. Two cute computer games, via DVD-ROM, are including: Punt a Pooch and Whack-a-Wawa are included, with especially funny sound effects utilized to simulate kicking Odie right where he deserves it.

Final Thoughts:
I wish there was more of what makes Garfield Garfield in Garfield Gets Real, but no such luck. The animation is quite good, the production design is extremely clever, and the voice work is excellent. But the script, while clever with the one-way mirror comic strip pages gimmick, isn't very funny (it's more sad and downbeat, actually), nor does the constant video game structuring help, either. Too much plot and not enough Garfield grumbling overcomplicates the fool-proof formula of lazy cat + constant everyday headaches = funny. Some cute moments, but I'm going to suggest a rental first.