Disney Plus has released a trailer and poster for its live-action Lady and the Tramp. A remake of Disney’s 1955 animated classic (itself loosely based on Ward Greene’s novel, Happy Dan, The Cynical Dog), the movie features Tessa Thompson and Justin Theroux as the voices of the titular canine lovebirds. However, unlike the animals in other recent Disney retellings, the dogs in Lady and the Tramp are played by real pups, with Thomas Mann, Kiersey Clemons, and Yvette Nicole Brown bringing the story’s humans to life.

Written by Andrew Bujalski (Computer Chess) and directed by Charlie Bean (The LEGO Ninjago Movie), Lady and the Tramp will become available for streaming when Disney Plus launches this fall on Tuesday, November 12. The film was included as part of the streamer’s presentation at D23 today, along with the other TV shows and movies set to premiere on the service’s launch date. Its first-look footage has since made its way online, after the one-sheet dropped this morning.

The Lady and the Tramp poster recreates the iconic romantic dinner from the animated film (which unfolds to the tune of “Bella Notte”), while also giving its furry stars a pair of not-so-convincing CGI eyes (hopefully, for the promotional material only). You can check it out below, after the trailer.

Judging by the trailer, the live-action Lady and the Tramp will take place in the same historical period as the animated film before it (1909, to be exact). The footage also confirms the dogs in the movie will speak with the assistance of CGI, which looks a bit odd in this preview (though, arguably, better than the talking animals in other recent Disney retellings, like The Lion King). Beyond that, it appears the movie will cover most of the same narrative beats as the animated version before it, as Lady’s idyllic existence with her owners (Mann and Clemons) is interrupted by the arrival of their baby and Lady’s subsequent whirlwind romance with Tramp. The trailer also provides a quick glimpse at Lady’s neighbors, Trusty the Bloodhound and Jock the Scottish Terrier (voiced by Sam Elliott and Ashley Jensen).

All in all, the live-action Lady and the Tramp doesn’t seem to be promising much of anything new, as far as the general story goes. At the same time, the decision to use real dogs appears to be working to the movie’s advantage and lends the trailer footage an air of innocence that Disney’s CGI-fueled retellings like The Lion King and even The Jungle Book didn’t have. The film also seems brighter and more visually pleasing than some of the studio’s other live-action remakes of their animated hits (see also: Dumbo). For those reasons, it will be interesting to see if this one is ultimately better received critically than most of the Mouse House re-imaginings that’ve come before it.

Source: Disney Plus

  • Lady and the Tramp Release Date: 2019-11-12