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As the voice of comic-strip cat Garfield, Bill Murray has reverted back to the obnoxious, snarky persona that made him famous on Saturday Night Live, and he’s the best thing in this film, which seems to have come about 15 years too late, long after the Garfield craze has passed. A live-action movie that uses real cats and dogs but a CGI Garfield, it doesn’t deviate much from the comic strip. Garfield enjoys being the center of his owner John’s world until John brings dog Odie home from the vet. Then Odie’s kidnapped by a would-be celebrity to be half of his stage act, and Garfield, realizing he’s been mean and selfish, sets out to save his fellow pet. It’s not much of a story, and director Peter Hewitt seems content to flesh it out with bland staging and characterizations. Breckin Meyer plays John as a likable but utterly forgettable guy; Jennifer Love Hewitt as his love interest seems content to substitute short skirts for character development and actual acting. Bill Murray has been on a roll, most notably with Lost in Translation, and though Garfield falls far short of his other career highs, it’s a minor hiccup. (75 minutes)
BY BROOKE HOLGERSON
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