{"id":8563,"date":"2024-11-19T00:11:10","date_gmt":"2024-11-19T05:11:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/?p=8563"},"modified":"2024-11-19T00:11:10","modified_gmt":"2024-11-19T05:11:10","slug":"the-queens-corgi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/2024\/11\/19\/the-queens-corgi\/","title":{"rendered":"The Queen\u2019s Corgi"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"The Queen\u2019s Corgi <\/strong>(2019)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lionsgate UK\/Comedy-Adventure\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 85 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated PG (thematic content involving sexually suggestive material, rude humor, violence, some language, a drug reference)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Ben Stassen and Vincent Kesteloot\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: John R. Smith and Rob Sprackling\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: Ramin Djawadi\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: July 5, 2019 (UK)\/January 24, 2020 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Jack Whitehall, Julie Walters, Sheridan Smith, Ray Winstone, Matt Lucas, Tom Courtenay, Colin McFarlane, Iain McKee, Nina Wadia, Sarah Hadland, Debra Stephenson, Jon Culshaw.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Box Office: $31.4M (World)<\/p>\n

Rating<\/strong>: ** \u00bd<\/p>\n

\u00a0Movie viewing literally went to the dogs this past weekend with the two canine-themed flicks I watched with my wife. First up was the abysmal Agent Toby Barks about a dog who\u2019s also a secret government agent. It makes any silly live-action Disney movie from the 70s look like Fellini. That\u2019s all the review you\u2019ll get out of me on that one. I wasted enough time just watching it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Next, we watched The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong>, a Belgian-made computer-animated comedy about Rex (Whitehall, Bad Education), one of the Corgis owned by Queen Elizabeth (Walters, Paddington). My first question is this; who is it for? It looks like a cute movie for kids, but the truth is some of it is wildly inappropriate for the little lads and lasses. A perfect example is when a comically exaggerated version of President Trump tells his wife\u2019s female Corgi to \u201cgrab some puppy\u201d in her pursuit of Rex. I think we all get the reference; it doesn\u2019t make it right. First, it\u2019s NEVER funny to joke about sexual assault. Second, it\u2019s a kid\u2019s movie. I get that the makers throw in jokes only adults will get to keep parents amused, but there\u2019s a line that must never be crossed. This line crosses that line. Although it will likely go over the heads of little ones, it still has no place in a supposed family movie. That\u2019s only the tip of the iceberg; there\u2019s plenty of material in The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> unsuitable for the single-digit demographic. I\u2019ll get to it momentarily.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Rex, who gives new meaning to the term \u201cspoiled dog\u201d has been the Queen\u2019s \u201cTop Dog\u201d since he was a puppy. In a move borrowed from Up, the whole opening sequence of Rex coming to live at Buckingham Palace is rendered without dialogue. We watch as he fills the Queen\u2019s heart with joy while driving poor Prince Philip (Courtenay, The Dresser) nuts with his puppy antics- e.g. constantly stealing his Union Jack bedroom slippers. Then we get into the story which begins with Donald (impressionist Culshaw) and Melania (comedian Stephenson) visiting the Palace with their dog Mitzi (Hadland, Miranda). The Queen thinks Rex would be a suitable mate for the First Dog, but Rex isn\u2019t having any of it. The ensuing chase around the Palace ends with Rex accidentally biting Trump in the crotch. If that doesn\u2019t cause an international incident, I don\u2019t know what will.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Thinking he\u2019s fallen out of favor with his mistress forever, Rex runs away from home on the suggestion of his best friend Charlie (Lucas, Alice in Wonderland) only to be double-crossed and left for dead in a freezing stream. Always jealous of Rex\u2019s high position, Charlie makes it look like Rex was killed by a fox so he can usurp the role of Top Dog. Meanwhile, Rex finds himself in a shelter where the other dogs are initially put off by his fancy mannerisms.<\/p>\n

\u00a0This is where The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> takes a dark turn. In a very dated reference, there\u2019s a secret fight club that nobody talks about. Dog fighting, how sweet! That won\u2019t give kids too many nightmares. Why don\u2019t they throw in a Michael Vick reference while they\u2019re at it? The top fighter and HDIC (Head Dog in Charge) is a mean, vicious pit bull by the name of Tyson (Winstone, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). Rex makes the top of his s*** list when he moves in on his girlfriend Wanda (Smith, Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps), an attractive Saluki who dances provocatively before the fights. When Tyson finds out, he challenges Rex to a fight he can\u2019t possibly win. \u00a0His best option is to escape and find his way back to Buckingham before Charlie is named the new Top Dog in a special ceremony.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Again I ask, this is a kid\u2019s movie? Between the sex jokes and dog fighting, any parent who takes their children to see The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> ought to have their head examined. That\u2019s not all. There\u2019s a gag involving a clearly gay man who comes to adopt a dog. Yes, the word \u201cqueen\u201d comes up. There\u2019s one about a former drug-sniffing dog\u2019s cocaine addiction. Near the end, a couple of dogs nearly die in a fire deliberately set by Charlie. The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> is one seriously screwed up kid\u2019s movie. Maybe that\u2019s why I like it. Aw hell, there\u2019s no maybe about it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0I hate to say it, but I enjoyed almost every schizophrenic minute of The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong>, a movie that alternates between cutesy and crass. At the same time, it\u2019s pointed in its depiction of our Commander-in-Chief as a boorish buffoon who takes selfies with royal guards and drinks Coca-Cola at tea time. I\u2019m sure this will offend his supporters, but since The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> seemingly aims to offend, what\u2019s the big deal?<\/p>\n

\u00a0On a technical level, the animators do solid work. It\u2019s colorful, vibrant and detailed. It\u2019s better than I expected from a CA movie not made by Pixar, DreamWorks or Blue Sky. The dogs, the Corgis in particular, are suitably cute. There are funny moments throughout The Queen\u2019s Corgi<\/strong> although most of my laughter was directed at the wrongness of the humor. In other words, I laughed for all the wrong reasons. This movie is so NOT right. I couldn\u2019t help but like it. I\u2019m going to recommend it as a weird curiosity, but you probably shouldn\u2019t let the kids watch.\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Queen\u2019s Corgi (2019)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Lionsgate UK\/Comedy-Adventure\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 RT: 85 minutes\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rated PG (thematic content involving sexually suggestive material, rude humor, violence, some language, a drug reference)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Director: Ben Stassen and Vincent Kesteloot\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Screenplay: John R. Smith and Rob Sprackling\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Music: Ramin Djawadi\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Release date: July 5, 2019 (UK)\/January 24, 2020 (US)\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Cast: Jack Whitehall, Julie Walters, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":8851,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-animation"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/The-Queens-Corgi-PIC.jpg?fit=620%2C348&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8563"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8563\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8853,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8563\/revisions\/8853"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8851"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/movieguy247.com\/MovieGuy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}