Review of Bolt (2008) by Sergio E — 17 Apr 2011

Bolt: What is this red liquid coming from my paw?

Mittens: It's called blood, hero!

Bolt: Do I need it?

Mittens: Yes, so if you want to keep it inside your body, where it belongs, you should stop jumping off trucks doing eighty on the interstate!

It is actually a nice story I'll give you that. To echo the biggest fan in the film, Bolt is fully Awesome! Or at least the 3D version of this film, especially the first 10 minutes where we see the superdog in action, showcasing super powers such as his eyes shooting laser beams, speedy acceleration, super strength, and his signature super bark. These are the avenues where 3D gets put to good use, but don't expect every aspect of the film to come flying toward you from the screen.

Disney continues its fascination with the canines this year, having seen the likes of Beverly Hills Chihuahua, its collaboration with India in Roadside Romeo, and now, venturing into the 3D arena with Bolt the superdog. Man's best friend probably never had so much cinematic exposure in the same year, and 2008 ends off with an American Shepherd being the star of the show.

Like The Truman Show, Bolt (voiced by John Travolta) is brought up as the unwitting star of a Hollywood television series, and is totally clueless to the world outside of its sound studio. Thinking that everything's for real, he becomes the perennial fish out of water, having been accidentally shipped from Hollywood to the Big Apple, and thinking that his person Penny (Miley Cyrus) is in mortal danger. Hence comes the road trip back to where he belongs, together with some serious questions asked in dealing with culture shock as he discovers his mortality and his being nothing but a normal mutt.

Joining him in the adventures are a cynical cat Mittens (Susie Essman) who shovels the cruelties of the real world down Bolt's throat to awaken his idea, as well as a very zealous fanatical fan in hamster Rhino (Mark Walton). There's nothing groundbreaking here in its character development because it's tried and tested formula, as you'd come to expect everyone ironing out their initial differences to come through stronger as a combined unit than individuals out to fulfil their objectives - Bolt wants to return to his owner, Mittens just wants to rediscover love lost, and Rhino, well, is simply enjoying every minute spent in hanging around his idol.

There are plenty of laughs coming from the initial half of the movie before Bolt's attempt to unlearn what he has learnt. The downside of course is that most of the funniest parts of the movie, already made it to the trailer. That aside, there's a very powerful message contained within for the young in reminding them not to abandon their pets, which is almost THE message that gets put into an animal-friendly/centric movie. Love and Friendship are the usual themes used through which to tug at your heartstrings, with enough moments to go "aww" and fight that tear or two in staining the 3D glasses which have to be returned. And of course with any dog movie, Loyalty is never far behind.

A girl named Penny and a dog named Bolt, who has various superpowers, must constantly thwart the evil plans of the nefarious Doctor Calico. However, little does Bolt know he is actually just a star on a hit television series called Bolt. To gain a more realistic performance, the TV show's producers have deceived Bolt his entire life, arranging the filming in such a way that Bolt believes the television show is real and he really has superpowers. After filming completes for the latest episode, Bolt escapes from his on-set trailer when he mistakenly believes Penny has been kidnapped by the television villain. He attempts to break through a window, knocking himself unconscious and falls into a box of styrofoam peanuts. With no one aware Bolt is in the box, it is shipped from Hollywood to New York City. In New York, he meets Mittens, a female alley cat who bullies pigeons out of their food. Bolt, convinced Mittens is an evil nemesis who works for Doctor Calico, forces Mittens to help him get back to Hollywood, and the two start their journey westward on a truck. Meanwhile, in Hollywood, Penny is deeply saddened over Bolt's disappearance but is forced by the studio to continue filming with a Bolt lookalike. As their adventure proceeds, Bolt starts to notice that his superpowers aren't working, and rationalizes this is the effect that styrofoam has on his body.

Surprised at his first feelings of both pain and hunger, Bolt is shown by Mittens how to act like a cute, but needy dog, and is rewarded by food. They meet Rhino, a fearless, TV-obsessed hamster and huge Bolt fan who joins their team. Mittens tries to convince Bolt that his superpowers aren't real, but their discussion is cut short by the arrival of Animal Control, who captures them both and transports them to an animal shelter. After being freed en route by Rhino, Bolt finally realizes that he is just a normal dog, but regains his confidence after Rhino (oblivious to this revelation) gives him a pep talk. They rescue Mittens from the shelter and escape, allowing them to continue their journey. Along the way, Bolt learns to enjoy typical dog activities (such as hanging his head out the window and playing fetch), but Mittens refuses to go farther than Las Vegas. She tells Bolt that his Hollywood life is fake and there is no real love for him there. Her emotional rant reveals that she was once a house cat, but was abandoned by her previous owner and left to brave the harsh streets alone and declawed. Bolt refuses to believe that Penny doesn't love him, and continues on alone, wishing Mittens the best. Rhino, learning of Bolt's departure, convinces Mittens that they must help him, and the two set off to find Bolt once again.

Bolt reaches the studio, finding Penny embracing his lookalike. Unaware that Penny still misses him, and that her affection for the lookalike was only a part of a rehearsal for the show, he leaves brokenhearted. Mittens, on a gantry in the studio, sees what Bolt does not - Penny telling her mother how much she misses Bolt. Realizing that Penny truly does love Bolt, Mittens follows Bolt and explains. At the same time, the Bolt-lookalike panics during filming and accidentally knocks over some torches, setting the sound stage on fire and trapping Penny. Bolt arrives and reunites with Penny inside the burning studio, being rescued as they succumb to smoke asphyxiation.

Penny and her mother subsequently quit the show when their agent attempts to exploit the incident for publicity purposes. Penny herself adopts Mittens and Rhino, and moves to a rural home to enjoy a simpler, happy lifestyle with Bolt and her new pets. The show continues, but with Bolt's original replacement and a new replacement for "Penny" with her appearance being explained in the show as being serious injuries necessitating her undergoing facial reconstruction surgery, and adopting an alien abduction storyline (one that even Rhino finds unrealistic, and Bolt finds "redonkulous").

Bolt tells the story a dog who plays a heroic dog in a hit TV show and has some trouble recognizing that he doesn't even have superpowers. This becomes something of a hindrance when he is accidentally shipped from Hollywood to New York City. From there he has to make his way home with the help of a manky old cat and an overweight hamster in a plastic ball.

The canine star of a fictional sci-fi/action show that believes his powers are real embarks on a cross country trek to save his co-star from a threat he believes is just as real.