Clifford the Big Red Dog (3 Stars)

This film is based on a series of 80 books about a giant red dog called Clifford. Three animated television series and an animated film have already been made about Clifford. This is the first live action film made about the giant dog.

A 12-year-old girl called Emily lives in New York City with her single mother. The mother has to go away on a business trip, so Emily has to stay with her uncle Casey.

Emily is given a sweet little red puppy at an animal rescue tent. Emily asks the owner how big he'll grow, and the owner tells her that it depends on how much love he's given. The next day the dog is enormous, about three meters tall. This is the start of a series of comical adventures.

There's a bad guy in the story. Zac Tieran is the owner of a company called Lyfegro, which is trying to genetically engineer animals to grow bigger. There's no obvious reason why. When he sees the dog on television he attempts to steal it.

The film sounded interesting when I read about it. I wanted to take my grandson Oliver to the cinema, and this seemed like the best film. The theatre was full of parents with children. There was laughter from the other children, but Oliver was bored and kept asking when the film would be over. I too found the film dull. I thought that Clifford would be a lovingly sweet dog, but he didn't manage to charm me. He wasn't as soft and cuddly as I'd expected. Maybe he's just too big. The film failed to give me the warm, fuzzy feeling I was hoping for.