Trouble (2019)

Directed by: Kevin Johnson | 87 minutes | animation, comedy, family | Dutch voice cast: Ricardo Blei, Stefania, Rico Verhoeven, Bizzey | Original voice cast: Big Sean, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Snoop Dogg, Kevin Chamberlin, Cesar Millan, Colby Lopez, Cher Rue, Harland Williams, Manny Streetz

Once upon a time there was a dog named Trouble who inherited twelve million dollars from his owner. That owner was the wealthy businesswoman Leona Helmsley, who was nicknamed the ‘Queen of mean’ because of her tyrannical approach to her staff. Because that twelve million was excessive money to be able to care for the animal (already nine years old at the time of his owner’s death), the inheritance was reduced to two million dollars. According to his new caretaker Carl Lekic, the manager of one of Helmsley’s largest hotels, that was spacious enough to support Trouble for a decade. So where did those costs go? Annually, $100,000 was paid for security, $8,000 went to grooming, and $1,200 was earmarked for dog food (a dog that swims in money will probably turn its nose up at kibble and tripe). For Lekic himself, there was a “salary” of $60,000 for properly performing his duties as a caregiver. After Troubles died at age 12, the rest of the money went to a charitable project fund. Against Helmsley’s wishes, her beloved dog was not buried with her in the family mausoleum; New York state law forbade that.

This true story is undoubtedly a source of inspiration for the animated film ‘Trouble’ (2019) by director Kevin Johnson. The American has more than two decades of experience in the world of animation film, including as a Creative Consultant, animator and Storyboard Artist. His resume includes titles such as ‘The Iron Giant’ (1999), ‘Open Season’ (2006), ‘Astro Boy’ (2009) and ‘Alvin and the Chipmunks 3’ (2011). ‘Trouble’ is the second full-length animated film he’s directing, after 2014’s ‘The Jungle Book’ (not to be confused with Jon Favreau’s superior live action film adaptation two years later). Perhaps not the most appealing title, but Johnson is a hard-working man who still gets his share of the overcrowded animation landscape in the margins. For the story of ‘Trouble’, he collaborated with no fewer than five different writers, of whom Judah Miller (known for the adult animated series ‘American Dad’ and ‘King of the Hill’) is the best known. That’s quite a lot of people for a film that primarily focuses on small children and is therefore not too complicated.

The little dog Trouble feels like a king in the enormous villa of his mistress, an old rich baroness. He has a huge bed to himself, every day he gets to eat a large steak (and he can eat it at the table!), gets a massage and after a big message his behind is rinsed for him. Nothing to take that lice life away from him. Or is it… One day his sweet mistress dies and then the future for Trouble suddenly becomes very uncertain. A distant cousin of the Baroness already counts herself rich as the only heir and suddenly stands on the doorstep with her equally mean husband. They want to get rid of the ‘mutt’ as soon as possible. Trouble finds herself among the street dogs, unfriendly dancing squirrels and angry pizza bakers and has the greatest possible effort to save himself in the evil outside world. Fortunately, there is the singing pizza delivery boy Zoë who takes him under her wing. At the same time, the dark duo who have moved into the villa discover that they really need Trouble to make any claim to the fortune. They hire a curious but illustrious animal detective to track down the little dog.

The original version features the voices of Big Sean, Snoop Dogg and dog trainer Cesar Millan, among others; in the Dutch translation, the characters are voiced by YouTube star Stefania, kickboxer Rico Verhoeven and rapper Bizzey, among others. A motley crew with many musical qualities, which cannot prevent ‘Trouble’ from being disappointing. There is little to criticize about the animations, although what we are presented with is not groundbreaking. The biggest shortcoming is the writing; the story is not very original, the characters are poorly developed and the humor rarely turns out the way the makers intended. The angry squirrels, for example, who every once in a while start a Michael Jackson-like dance mainly get on the nerves, just like the animal detective. The difficult relationship between Trouble and an embittered street dog turns out better, although the message associated with this storyline is somewhat trite. The cameo of singer-songwriter Jason Mraz seems to have been dragged in by the hair and will probably mean nothing to the young Dutch viewers.

In the overflowing range of animated films, you have to be in good hands to stand out and make an impression. The intentions of the makers are undoubtedly good, but unfortunately ‘Trouble’ misses the mark too often.