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BY TOM MEEK
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Off the Leash! is the fifth Benji movie since the lovable mutt first graced the screen back in 1974. The series achieved such popularity that even Chevy Chase got into the act with Oh, Heavenly Dog (1980). But that was then and this is now, and 17 years after Benji IV, creator/director Joe Camp had to go the indie route to get this Benji V to the big screen. Actually, the title canine is only part of the plot, since there’s a nationwide search to find the next Benji. Down in Mississippi, Terry Hatchett (Chris Kendrick) breeds dogs in rundown confines and abuses his son, Colby (Nick Whitaker). Terry also discards any pup that won’t fetch a big fee, and it’s one such dog that Colby saves and nurtures. Time passes and, presto, we have a Benji look-alike. We also have two bungling dogcatchers (Randall Newsome and Duane Stephens) and a rangy mongrel called Lizard Tongue. The whole thing feels like an overblown After School Special. Terry is a stock persona stuck in asshole gear from frame one, and Whitaker acts as if the only movie he’d ever seen is The Yearling. And though the cute antics of the shaggy beasties do endear, they’re almost as manipulative and maudlin as the overwrought score. At the Providence Place 16 and Showcase cinemas. (97 minutes)
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