Max (2015)

Good concept, poorly executed.

Yo, there's no way for me to review this film without saying, take your *insert ethnicity + "ass" here* to see this film,like now. You have to see it in order to know what you're really messing with.

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

"Max" is a kind of unusual family movie in that it's the kind of family movie you hardly get from major Hollywood studios in this day and age. If you've been around the block enough, you'll see that its core story is what is normally found in this day and age in direct- to-DVD and made-for-television movies. There is of course the adorable dog, the tomboy love interest to the youthful protagonist, and predictable twists in the plot like the inevitable moment when the dog is separated from the youthful protagonist. The movie is not only pretty predictable, it's also far too long (did it really have to last one hundred and ten minutes in length?) and there are a few surprisingly shoddy special effects for a major studio movie. Still, as predictable as the movie is, it does generally play out in a much less juvenile manner than usual. For example, the bad guys here are not bumbling fools, but are scary and dangerous. The protagonists are also a lot more believable than usual - they are believably flawed, and convincingly learn some lessons along the way. The tone of the movie is also fairly realistic and lacks the loud and strident feel of many other modern day family movies. I'm not saying this is a movie to actively seek out, but if you should come across it, it will probably entertain (and to a degree educate) your children and be much less painful to watch than you may think for you and your spouse.

Let's all say it together: WTF.Seriously, this film was such a let-down. It had a really good premise, but the writers must have got lost in a tale of Lassie half-way. It became ludicrous, unbelievable, and worse- CORNY. Like, badly corny. Cringey, even. Highlighting the beautiful work of war dogs is admirable, but so sad to see it completely misrepresented in this way. By far the dog was the best actor, and by far the best scene was the dog's origin story.//SPOILER ALERT// So, the military have a funeral for Kyle (which, was honestly quite heartfelt to watch), and then they release the "possible aggressive" war dog with PTSD into the care of the family? Err, that's not real. Then the family (who were not at all briefed on PTSD in dogs) put him in the backyard tethered and caged and alone - hmmm. Dog abuse? Apart from some fireworks (which scare all dogs by the way), Max seems perfectly fine to bound around like a happy young thing. Then when the shady bits take place, I wonder why do kids, with mobile phones and connections with the army, not call the military police or federal police to report a crime? Since when do bad guys not gag a hostage? And do bad guys really chase after dogs and kids instead of securing their gun deals? Like, really?? If the police were in on the whole gun deal, then why not explore that deeper? OK, so it's a kids film, I hear you say- but if it's a kid's film, it needs to be completely PG and silly. Yet the topic is REAL. The topic is meaningful. The topic of this film is meant to be about a war dog whose handler was in killed in action. That is a heavy tale to tell. If this film is about the dogs, and as the end of the film said, "in memory of the dogs who served", then why introduce the shady gun deal? And worse still- Why kill the bad marine dude? Yeh, he's bad, but he didn't deserve to die. He deserved military court. Kids movies need to stop putting in falseness, especially when you're talking about the war- a war currently taking place. OMG, how do you expect kids will understand this film? Tell the truth, join the marines, chase men with guns, all bad guys die (even those on our side who make bad decisions) - yikes. A bit rigid, eh? 2 stars.

Fans of Lassie and Rin Tin Tin will undoubtedly find much to celebrate in "Max," an old-fashioned a-boy-and-his-dog story updated to reflect our post-9/11 age.The boy in this instance is Justin (Josh Wiggins), a disgruntled teen whose older brother, Kyle (Robbie Amell), a Marine who trains dogs to sniff out weapon caches on the field of battle, is killed in Afghanistan. After Kyle's dog, Max, develops a sort of canine version of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, the dead man's family dutifully rescues him, assigning Justin the unenviable task of rehabilitating him back to the point where he can interact with humans again without instinctively wanting to rip their throats out. This Justin does with the help of his new friend, Carmen (the charming Mia Xitlali), who knows a thing or two about training challenging dogs.In addition to his canine-raising duties, Justin has to contend with his tough-as-nails military dad (Thomas Haden Church) and his own innate laziness and cynicism. But with the help of Max, a devoted and kindly mother (Lauren Graham), and the love of a new girlfriend, Justin eventually grows into his manhood, demonstrating that rehabilitation is often a two-way street.There are any number of touching moments in the screenplay by Sheldon Lettich and co-writer/director Boaz Yakin, which, happily, manages to keep the unavoidable suds down to a minimum. However, even the fine performances (especially by Wiggins) can't overcome an utterly preposterous subplot involving Justin's entanglement with a local gun-running cartel, a storyline that not only comes to dominate the second half of the movie but may make the movie itself somewhat less than appropriate for the youngest members of its intended audience.Ah well, at least the canine stunt work - kudos to both Max and his trainer on that score - is super impressive throughout.

I saw this film a week or so ago on Redbox because I didn't get a chance to see it in theaters and I got to say this film was really cute and touching. I loved Max the dog and the boy who takes care of him after his brother dies in Iraq or some dessert country. Sorry I forgot where but anyways Max has to go somewhere because his owner who trained him is gone so the brother takes him and they are a bit stand-offish at first but they start to love one another. It is rather sweet and adorable. Now I gave the film a 7 because of the acting. I didn't care for that Lauren Graham because her Texas accent was horrible. Trust me, if you know anyone from Texas, you know they don't speak with a long drawn out speech. This ain't Alabama or Mississippi okay Lauran. If you have sometime on the weekend rent this from Redbox ad enjoy.