Movie Thoughts: Beethoven (1992)

• Released: April 3rd, 1992
• Directed by: Brian Levant
• Running time: 1h 27min
• Rating 3/5

Synopsis

A family ends up adopting a rambunctious Saint Bernard named Beethoven. The father doesn't like the dog, while the kids adore him. Then it turns out that a villainous vet wants to obtain Beethoven for nefarious means. Will the family be able to save their dog?    

My Thoughts

I watched this movie literally once as a very young kid, but I still had pretty vivid memories of it somehow. And now watching it as an adult...it's not bad, but it's also not very good.

This is my all accounts a very middle-of-the-road family film for dog lovers and kids (and kids who love dogs, of course). It's not terrible, the characters are likable enough, the movie looks decent, the dog actor and some of the human actors do a good job, the story is okay, but man, it also doesn't stand out in any way. This kinda feels like every dog movie of this type that I've already seen. 

The villain's plan is also...kinda nonsensical. He does all sorts of animal experiments and he literally wants Beethoven just to lodge a bullet into his skull. That's it. And it feels so weird for him to go about this way of stealing Beethoven for his experiments when he could literally get a large dog for his plan through a much easier way (just go to a pound or something?). So yeah, I don't think that the main villain or his evil plan really work.

One aspect of the movie I did really like is Beethoven's unexpected friendship with this one dog who helped him as a puppy. This dog lives as a stray, but even when Beethoven's an adult they keep helping each other. That's just nice.

The stuff with the family is...fine. It's all just very basic, though. Nothing about it stands out in any way. Jut some nuclear family drama that's pretty easily resolved by the end. The kids' acting also wasn't great. Not terrible but I've seen a lot better.

So yeah, basic movie. It isn't bad, so maybe check it out if you like dogs or wanna show this to a kid. But if you're looking for anything deeper, look elsewhere.