Review of Sgt. Stubby: An American Hero (2018) by Jason M — 14 Apr 2018

Sgt. Stubby: An American Hero.

Initial Reaction: G.I. Joe with dogs?

Main Characters.

Robert Conroy: He's a solider voiced by Logan Lerman.

Gaston Bapriste: He's a French soldier voiced by Gerard Depardieu.

Plot Summary.

This film takes place during World War One. Americans are training so they can go over and help Europe fend off the German forces attacking them.

But things take a turn for the strange when a dog shows up at an army training camp. One of the soldiers takes him in as his pet - and the superiors allow it because they figure they need all the help they can get.

Soon, the dog (named Stubby by the soldier) is on the front lines. And he's helping out by getting rid of rats, finding soldiers buried in rubble and warning everyone about a gas attack (don't ask me how he does it because I don't know.).

SCORING.

Main Characters.

Gaston and Robert have great chemistry with each other - Gaston is the veteran who shows Robert the ways of war, and Robert has the youth and vigor. It's easy to root for these two. SCORE: 9.

Supporting Cast.

There are quite a few interesting characters in the film. Robert's friends include a defected German soldier, and the leaders are much more human than they usually are in these types of films. SCORE: 9.

Plot.

This film is enjoyable to watch (even if it's hard to believe some of the things that Stubby does while he's on duty). But the film meanders a lot, going from one plot thread to another without any real buildup to a climax.

And there's a narrator who I think could've been left out of the film. SCORE: 8.

Originality.

This film avoids all the typical plot lines that these types of films fall into, and it's great to see that it takes time out to let the characters breathe and make connections with each other. SCORE: 9.

Violence Factor.

There are a lot of gunfights and explosions in this film - and the animators are in a no-win situation. Soldiers get physically hurt, but they don't want to show any wounds on those soldiers because it may be too frightening for some in the audience.

So we have a bunch of guys who look totally healthy walking about in great physical pain. Wait - what? SCORE: 5.

Other Moral Issues.

This film does a great job of showing just how important every single person is in a team effort - but not all dogs are going to act the way Stubby does. SCORE: 7.

Final Score (out of 60): 47 % Score: 78.33%.

The characters make this film work.