Review of Max (2016) by Tomb W — 25 Jun 2015

An old fashioned family movie that doesn't sugarcoat it's subject matter.

While families everywhere will undoubtedly be rushing to the theaters this weekend to see Inside Out again (myself included), it is also worth noting that we have another good family movie about a war vet from Afghanastan suffering from PTSD that just happens to be a German Shepherd named Max.

Max is one of those movies that you're just glad was made. It harkens back to the old fashioned movies that Disney used to make back in the fifties and eighties.

Max is a marine dog who witnesses his owner, Kyle Wincott (Robbie Amell), getting killed in action in Afghanistan. He's taken in by Kyle's family after they are informed that the pound will put Max down do to his serious case of post traumatic stress disorder (yes, dogs get that too). Max develops a keen interest in his Kyle's brother, Justin (Josh Wiggins), who takes it upon himself to train Max with the help of his friends, Carmen (Mia Xitlani), and Chuy (Dejon LaQuake). Together, they help Justin take care of Max as Max helps Justin's family move on.

Justin's Mom (Lauren Graham) is supportive but his father (Thomas Haden Church) suspects there may be more to the story surrounding Kyle's death, and believes that Max may be responsible in some way. The rest of the movie consists of Justin, his friends, and Max attempting to uncover the mystery surrounding Kyle's death which leads them on an adventure of a lifetime.

I really enjoyed Max. It's an unusually enjoyable summer movie. A nice break from the usual summer fare. There are a few scenes where it's edited rather frenetically and at times the writing comes off as cheesily funny, but its message is clear and it doesn't treat its audience like they don't know what their watching.

This movie has familiar names such as Thomas Haden Church and Lauren Graham but I really enjoyed the younger cast as well. Josh Wiggins was great as Justin and his friends were too. I can see them going on to do big things. But the real star, or various stars, of Max are very much the dog himself. These dogs are expertly trained and at times you actually feel like they know what they're doing when they get in front of the camera. It's really awesome seeing a dog act and if there was an Oscar category for best animal performance, you better believe Max would get the top prize.

I would definitely categorize Max as a family film, but like many "family" films in recent years, it most certainly has its mature moments. Along with its depiction of war and PTSD and thematic elements involving misunderstood dogs, Max also has some very suspenseful, and at times violent, action scenes. About one hour in, Max veers very close to a PG-13 rating and almost manages to barely cross that borderline with one moment in particular that I won't spoil. It's a great movie to bring your kids to but be warned that there are some pretty intense scenes towards the end.

Max did a great job at delivering what was promised from the trailers and it even did a few things that were unexpected. I would love to see it become an under the radar classic if not a classic all together.

****.