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Show Dogs | 2018 | PG | - 2.3.2

An NYPD police dog (voiced by Ludacris) and his FBI agent partner (Will Arnett) are tasked with tracking an exotic animal smuggler by way of a dog show in Las Vegas. Also with Natasha Lyonne, Omar Chaparro and the voices of Alan Cumming, Stanley Tucci, RuPaul, Shaquille O'Neal and Gabriel Iglesias. Directed by Raja Gosnell. A few lines of dialogue are spoken in Spanish with English subtitles and a couple of phrases are spoken in French without a translation. [1:32]

Editor's Note: An anthropomorphized police dog must go undercover as a show dog and in order to do so he must submit to the inspection and handling of his genitalia. The dog is very reluctant and is instructed to imagine his "Zen place" in order to get through the obviously distressing inspection. While these scenes are not presented in a sexual context, the implication of the character's initial reluctance and eventual submission is evocative of the concept of "grooming" that refers to a predator, specifically a sexual predator, establishing trust with potential victims in order to make them vulnerable and easier to victimize. The presentation of the dog's genitalia inspection as something he must get through, despite his evident discomfort and reluctance, has the potential of becoming an unwelcome message about limiting bodily autonomy and personal boundaries, especially for children and survivors of abuse. For a discussion about the concept of grooming and how it's presented in this film please see Macaroni Kid and For Every Mom. For a detailed analysis on what grooming is and how to protect children please see the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children.

SEX/NUDITY 2 - A woman wears a short skirt with opaque tights in several scenes. Women wear low-cut gowns that reveal cleavage, bare shoulders and backs in a few scenes. Models walking on platforms wear low-cut tops and short skirts that reveal cleavage and bare legs; one male model is shown bare-chested with his chest and abdomen visible.
 A man grabs a dog's testicles a few times and the dog flinches, but is instructed that he needs to remain calm and go along with the process; the dog eventually imagines dancing with a man as a distraction while being touched (please see the Violence/Gore category for more details and our Editor's Note above for a full explanation on why this scene may be more disturbing than it appears).
 A male and a female dog eat each end of a hot dog and their muzzles meet in the middle (like in "Lady and the Tramp"). A male dog tries to flirt with a female dog and she walks away unimpressed.
 Dogs talk about whether other dogs have been neutered or not. A dog says of another dog, "She looks hot." A dog imagines dancing with a man as a distraction. A man talks about breeding dogs.


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VIOLENCE/GORE 3 - A man holds a gun on another man and they argue briefly and then fight over the gun, wrestling and punching each other as a private plane moves toward them and the propellers spin dangerously close to the men (they are not struck). A woman punches a man in the face twice and knocks him out.
 A woman is shown lying unconscious on the ground as a dog is kidnapped and we see a bruise on her cheek when she revives. A tiger roars at a man in a plane and we later see a photo of the man with slashes on his face.
 A dog bites a man on the clothed buttock and the man yells. A dog barks ferociously at a man and bites his ankle while snarling (no injuries are seen). A man grabs a dog's testicles a few times and the dog flinches, flips around barking and bites the man on the hand (please see our Editor's Note above for a full explanation on why this scene may be more disturbing than it appears). A dog tackles a man with a gun and bites his fake beard off; the man yells and the dog runs away. A dog bites a man's pant leg and the man falls on the floor unharmed. A dog bites a tablet out of a man's hand. A dog bites a cell phone out of a woman's hand.
 A man and a dog chase a suspect and the dog spills garbage on the ground and the man trips over. A man drives his car and skids nearly hitting a dog that jumps and rolls over the trunk of the car, unharmed. A plane's propellers spin toward a young panda cub in a cage and it is rescued unharmed.
 A dog barks ferociously on one side of 2-way glass as a suspect on the other side of the glass is questioned and the man jumps and seems frightened when he sees the dog. A dog is snared around the neck and taken away by animal control officers (we see him placed in a cage). A dog drives a car through a pedestrian area and people jump out of the way unharmed. A tiger walks behind a man and the man knocks himself out by hitting his head on a metal bar.
 A large dog jumps on another large dog that flips on its back and kicks the first dog off a dock and into water. Several dogs run toward another dog and are disqualified from a competition. A young panda cub lets itself out of a cage and climbs on a carrousel; it falls off and scurries away from a man chasing it, it climbs a tree and falls off bouncing into a garbage can.
 A dog pretends to be injured and is taken to a cage in an animal control facility. We see a young panda cub in a cage in several scenes and it makes cooing noises that sound like it is afraid. We see a tiger in a cage.
 Two men and a woman argue in a few scenes. A man and a dog fight over choosing a radio station in a car and the man yells as the dog barks. A man says, "I'm gonna neuter that mongrel." A bird says that someone can, "Flip this bird any time." A dog talks about a man becoming his "chew toy." A dog talks about having been a successful competitor until he attacked the judges at a dog show where he was disqualified. A dog talks about disappearances at dog shows. A man talks about "killing and mounting" animals. A dog tells another dog, "You need to get rid of that tail." A male dog says some insulting things to a female dog and she leaves angrily. A woman talks about a dog being kidnapped. A pigeon says, "Falcons ate my entire family."
 A pigeon knocks another pigeon off its perch (no visible injuries are shown). A dog wears a "Bomb Squad" vest and acts jittery. A dog gives another dog a bag that is said to contain "catnip" but it is actually a rubber chicken that the dog bites and it squeaks. A dog is shown with a gooey facial mask on its face. A dog flatulates in a tub of water while being bathed and people and another dog in the room complain of the smell. A dog screams when his anus is waxed (we hear ripping sounds). Several dogs jump into a pool of water and one falls in as their handlers panic and try to get them out (no injuries are seen). A dog makes a face and drags his bottom on the carpet to confuse men in a room. A man eats a messy sardine sandwich. A dog steps in a large bowl of cupcake frosting. Two dogs in harnesses are shown zip lining; a tiger in a harness is shown zip lining. A man prepares and drinks a beverage with raw eggs and sardines and he gags a couple of times; he shares some with a dog.

LANGUAGE 2 - 2 scatological terms (one with just initials), 1 anatomical term, name-calling (bad attitude, wiener dog, ludicrous, traitor, losers, unsportsmanlike, slobbering imbecile, moron, nuts, chump, stupid human, lazy American, crazy, idiot, mutt, fake, phony, bad boys, shallow, dumb, toilet drinker, alpha, mongrel), exclamations (dang, bull, freaking, oh gosh), 4 religious exclamations (e.g. Oh My God, Oh God, Mon Dieu).

SUBSTANCE USE - Men and women hold glasses of champagne and other alcoholic beverages at a reception and another formal event.

DISCUSSION TOPICS - Friendship, trust, exotic animal smuggling, dog shows, NYPD, FBI, respect, confidence, resentment, homeland security, humility.

MESSAGE - Trusting others can help when solving problems.

CAVEATS

Be aware that while we do our best to avoid spoilers it is impossible to disguise all details and some may reveal crucial plot elements.

We've gone through several editorial changes since we started covering films in 1992 and older reviews are not as complete & accurate as recent ones; we plan to revisit and correct older reviews as resources and time permits.

Our ratings and reviews are based on the theatrically-released versions of films; on video there are often Unrated, Special, Director's Cut or Extended versions, (usually accurately labelled but sometimes mislabeled) released that contain additional content, which we did not review.


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