What happens if a glowing meteor crashes into the middle of Adventure City?
Why, the furry members Paw Patrol will leap into action, of course!
They’ll clear the streets of citizens and protect the innocent. They’ll use their industrial-vehicle knowhow to clean up the rubble and haul that huge, building-smashing meteor away.
But what if that glowing chunk of space rock is more than it appears? What if it contains crystals that can impart superpowers to those who touch them? And what if a couple bad guys want to get their hands on those crystals for selfish bad-guy reasons?
Well, then it’s once again up to these heroic pups to step into the fray. To do so, they each take a crystal and gain special powers themselves! Puppy pilot Skye is actually able to fly—without a plane!—and to lift heavy objects. Fireman pup Marshall can toss out fireballs. Chase can run super-duper fast. And Zuma can turn into a pool of water and, uh, put out the fires that clumsy pup Marshall makes.
And that’s not even considering the pups’ new powered up rescue vehicles. It’s amazing! The Paw Patrol can now take on any bad guy emergency.
There’s only one really pressing problem: What should they call themselves?
How about: The Paw Patrol, but more, with just a little bit extra!
Well … they’ll keep working on it.
The pups can be silly hounds at times, but they generally make heroic, positive choices to help others (albeit with one exception in the Negative Elements section below).
Skye is the central protagonist here. And she worries about being the smallest member of the Paw Patrol and the scrawniest of her puppy litter. But she ultimately learns (and illustrates for young viewers) that even when you’re little, you can work hard and be a big help to others.
Fellow Paw Patrol pup Liberty goes through a similar struggle when she learns that she doesn’t get a power after touching a crystal. So instead, Liberty works with a group of Junior Paw Patrol members (tiny puppies) and helps shape them into a productive support group. In fact, the Jr. Paw Patrol members save the day at one point.
Skye ultimately puts her life on the line to save the city from destruction. And the powered-up Paw Patrol use their new abilities to rescue people from big destructive emergencies.
None.
None.
There are several perilous moments in this story. When “mad” scientist Victoria Vance steals a crane, she ends up creating a huge fire in a scrap yard. Fuel tanks explode and set everything ablaze. The owners of the yard are left trapped in their nearby trailer. But the pups swoop in for the rescue.
Victoria Vance draws the meteor into the city, and it smashes the Paw Patrol tower and parts of the city highway. This baddie, in cahoots with Mayor Humdinger, also traps Skye in a crippled jet plane. Skye and the other Paw Patrol members work together to get the jet down safely.
Later, a large meteor shower crashes down to Earth, and Skye must singlehandedly deal with the danger. She risks her life and initially appears to be killed in the effort. (But she ultimately comes out unscathed.)
Mayor Humdinger uses the power of a crystal to grow into a giant. And he tries to smash people and pups beneath his shoe. Victoria gains the ability to fly and shoot electric blasts through the crystal’s power. She threatens others with (relatively harmless) electrical zaps.
The closest the film comes to any language issues is an exclamation of, “Oh my goodness!”
That said, the film does use the bouncy chorus of a pop song called “I Love It” by Icona Pop to underscore an action scene. And while there’s no profanity in the clip that we hear in the movie, the infectious song itself does contain a strong repeated profanity.
None.
Victoria Vance steals a scrap yard’s electromagnet to make her own meteor-attracting machine. There’s also a bit of toilet humor in the mix. Bad guy Humdinger spurs Victoria to look in the toilet, for instance. She lifts the lid and says, “That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” (It’s an escape tunnel.)
Skye breaks the rules at one point in an effort to prove herself. And she pays a price for that bad choice.
What kind of a meanie would I be if I said bad things about a Paw Patrol movie? Well, don’t worry, no such mean guy here.
The latest pic from the Paw Patrol pups is playful, puckish and filled with pizzaz. In other words, it’s rollicking and heroic fun. And it teaches kids that even if they feel small and underpowered, they can still bravely help those around them.
The only small ruff of warning I’ll bark out for parents is that there are some mean (but not terrible) baddies in the movie mix. And the perilous moments they cause could be a bit much for super-sensitive puppies in your pack. In fact, one important hero appears to be killed after making a self-sacrificial brave choice. (But don’t worry, she’s just knocked unconscious.)
The only other bone some parents might want to chew is the fact that, thanks to this move, there’s a whole new line of Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie toys looking for a home base. And some little hero in your house might passionately suggest that his or her bedroom is the perfect new HQ for them.
After spending more than two decades touring, directing, writing and producing for Christian theater and radio (most recently for Adventures in Odyssey, which he still contributes to), Bob joined the Plugged In staff to help us focus more heavily on video games. He is also one of our primary movie reviewers.
