Psycho's Movie Reviews #140: Spooky Buddies (2011)

Spooky Buddies is a 2011 Disney direct-to-DVD comedy film that is part of the Disney Buddies franchise, a series often referred to as the Air Bud and Air Buddies franchise. For the fifth instalment in the Air Buddies series, the team has a Halloween adventure in Fernfield. The film was directed by Robert Vince, produced by Anna McRoberts, and released by Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment on Blu-ray, DVD, and as a film download on September 20, 2011.

Plot

In 1937, Sheriff Jim and others from the town of Fernfield set off to the manor of Warwick the Warlock. Warwick has kidnapped five puppies so he can sacrifice them to the Halloween Hound, an evil hellhound who can open a portal to ghosts but only if he has the souls of five puppies of the same blood. One of the puppies, Pip, belongs to a young boy named Joseph. As the mob prepares to storm the manor, the hound turns Pip's siblings to stone, but Pip escapes. Warwick chases him and grabs him just as the mob enters. The Warlock manages to escape just as dawn approaches. Thus, when the hound tries to kill Pip he fails. Pip then turns to stone and becomes a ghost. Jim and Deputy Tracker surround Warwick; however, he jumps in the mirror and escapes. Joseph takes Pip's stone body while his father takes Warwick's spell book. The Sheriff takes Warwick's staff and announces to the townspeople that he would board up Warwick's house to prevent anything else from happening.

75 years later, the Buddies are on a school trip to Warwick's manor with their owners, Alice, Billy, Pete, Sam and Bartleby. When the class go to the graveyard to see Deputy Tracker's memorial stone, Billy finds himself scared of the appearance of the gravedigger, Mr. Johnston. Overhearing that the legend says that if you say "Halloween Hound" three times in front of Warwick's mirror, you would release the Halloween Hound. B-Dawg, who is a "scaredy cat", tries to overcome his fear by entering the condemned manor and say "Halloween Hound" three times in front of the mirror. Pip the ghost puppy tries to warn the Buddies, but B-Dawg is terrified by Pip's ghost and accidentally completes the reciting. B-Dawg's owner, Billy hasn't come up with his History project and decides to do it on the Halloween Hound. With the help of Sheriff Dan, Billy borrows Warwick's evidence file and staff. Billy's mother, Janice, buys Billy his costume for trick-or-treating, which is a Christmas Story-esque bunny suit, having misheard him saying, "Hip Hop Rabbit", when he meant "Hip Hop Rapper". Billy goes as Warwick the Warlock and humiliates B-Dawg in the bunny outfit. Billy meets up with his friends and the Buddies and they go trick-or-treating.

Two punks, Rodney and Skip, who had scared the class earlier on during the trip, go explore the manor. They witness the release of Warwick and the Halloween Hound who step out of the mirror. Warwick, thinking that Rodney and Skip released them, turns them into rats after accusing them of stealing his staff. Warwick learns from his owl assistant, Hoot, that his staff is in the hands of Billy. Warwick immediately sets off to search for his staff and spell book. As he is searching the streets, he believes that the town is already taken over as everyone is dressed up for Halloween. He sends the Halloween Hound to find the Buddies, who ask for help from a sorceress dog named Zelda. It is here that Pip explains he is not trying to hurt them, but to warn them that the Halloween Hound is coming. After using a spell to return Pip to his body, the Hound finds them and turns Sniffer and Zelda to stone. The kids are running from Warwick and hide in the Halloween party where Warwick finds his staff. They are rescued by Mr. Johnston (who is actually Pip's owner).

Warwick takes the pups hostage in his manor and says that if the book isn't returned, he will kill them. The Buddies have a daring escape from Warwick the Warlock. After escaping, the Buddies run from the Hound who has turned Pip back to stone and opened the portal. The evil spirits who've escaped the mirror turn everyone in the town into zombies and monsters. Meanwhile, Hoot decides to stop and leave but is also turned to stone by the Hound. Warwick steals his book back and shoots his staff at Mr. Johnston.

The Buddies hide in the kitchen where Budderball starts devouring pickled eyeballs. The Halloween Hound finds them and B-Dawg comes up with a plan. Just when the Halloween Hound is about to suck out Budderball's soul, B-Dawg signals Budderball who farts, releasing out gas, repelling the magic and causing the Halloween Hound to have his own soul sucked out. The kids and Mr. Johnston find Warwick paralyzed after opening the Bible and Billy takes Warwick's staff. He reads the spell which returns the evil spirits and undoes the hounds evil, such as turning people into stone. Mr Johnston destroys the staff to prevent Warwick from coming back.

Mr. Johnston is reunited with Pip as well as the kids being reunited with the Buddies. The kids bid goodbye to Mr. Johnston, who has located the owners of Pip's brothers and sisters and travels around America to return them. The Buddies bid farewell to Pip who thanks them for helping him defeat Warwick. The film ends with the kids waving goodbye to Mr. Johnston as he drives off with the caravan and the puppies.

Release/Box Office

Spooky Buddies was released on DVD, Blu-ray, and as a movie download on September 20, 2011. The physical release was produced in two different packages: a 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD combo pack and a 1-disc DVD. The movie download was produced in both standard and high definition. All versions of the release include an interview by Leo Howard of Disney Channel's Leo Little's Big Show with the character "Rosebud" and a music video for the song "Monster Mash".

Box Office = $19,215,575

My Review

It's a movie for kiddies about little doggies!

That's it! It's not a promotion of Christianity, witchcraft, or anything other than a Disney pursuit of the almighty dollar! I normally ignore the comments of others on this site, but sheesh! I really hope some of these posters are kidding. This is a straight-to-DVD Disney time waster that only wishes to give parents something they can show their kids on a rainy afternoon or some such. Maybe if I were under six years old I would also find this too frightening to watch. But that's what they initially said would be the problem with Scooby Doo, and look how long that has endured. Spooky Buddies is not great cinema, or deep cinema. Take it for what it is.

The story deals with an evil warlock attempting to unleash the powers of the underworld on an unsuspecting small town. It looks like he lives in the same house as Jerry Dandridge in the original Fright Night. Probably the same set was used. Anyway, this warlock first attempts to unleash this attack back in 1937. He and his evil Saint Bernard helper need the souls of five dogs related by blood. They nearly succeed, but the townspeople show up in time to stop the ritual and one dog's soul is not taken. Fast-forward to present day, and a group of five new puppies and five kids find themselves in danger of suffering the same fate. Can the ghost of the dog whose soul escaped the underworld warn the new pups in time? Or will the warlock and his evil dog catch the puppies and unleash their reign of terror on the town? And most importantly of all... will Nicholas Cage sue the makers of the film for making the warlock look so much like him?? The film is fairly cute, and certainly harmless. It spends as much time with the local kids as it does with the dogs. Even some of the local adults get in on the fun. More than a few of the voice actors are recognizable, and I really wasn't sure Tim Conway was still alive before seeing this. The Saint Bernard from the underworld who helps the warlock is kind of scary-looking, but he's no Cujo. I wasn't sure why the owl character was needed, but kids might like him. The puppies from 1937 who are of course saved and brought back to life are all cute little beagles. The puppies from the present are golden retrievers, as they are supposedly descended from Air Bud or something. I'm not really up on this Disney franchise. All very cute little pups. The film boasts better than expected special f/x. Ignore the dire warnings of others when it comes to Spooky Buddies. Its not going to scar any kid for life religiously. Just a good way to kill an hour and a half. Or something you can have on the background while your family is carving a pumpkin. Considering what type of film it is, its probably worth about 7/10