Clifford the Big Red Dog review — who’s a bad dog?

★☆☆☆☆
Here’s a great idea. If you’re thinking of watching Clifford the Big Red Dog, why not instead stream Digby, the Biggest Dog in the World, from 1973? It will save you the prospect of a film so muddled in its storytelling and so specious in its message-making that its very existence is almost nauseating. Realised via some mid-level effects like a secondary Pixar character, the supersized crimson canine lives in Manhattan and is big because, er, something to do with love. He’s cared for by a selfish layabout called Casey (Jack Whitehall doing his “American” accent) and his niece, Emily (Darby Camp). They spend the movie fleeing from evil biotech goons (something to do with size-enhancing chemicals and stock prices) before Emily finally breaks down and gives a speech about how everyone is unique and it’s OK to be different. Oh God. Where’s the bucket?
PG, 96min
In cinemas