Movie Review: Leo 2-6-25
This movie is about a 74-year-old tuatara named Leo, who lives as a class pet in Fort Meyers alongside his Chelonian buddy Squirtle. Leo believes that he’s dying, so one day while being taken home by one of the students, the super-talkative Summer. While trying to escape her bedroom, Summer learns that Leo can talk! After giving Summer advice about listening to other, Leo becomes a class sensation and helps each of the students with their problems, but does Leo have what it takes to charm the super-strict killjoy substitute teacher Ms. Malkin? And can Squirtle still be friends with Leo without getting super jealous?
Leo is easily Adam Sandler’s best movie with a surprisingly deep story, expressive character animation, some catchy songs, and super engaging characters. Of all the students, Summer is my favorite because of how relatable she is: Summer talks to her family and classmates so much that they get bored very quickly. This is something I can totally relate to since I have autism, ADHD, and OCD, and just like Summer, I can talk so much that I can end up bothering others.
Before I move on, Summer looks like this.
And it isn’t just the animals and kids that have depth either: The main reason Ms. Virginia Malkin is such a sourpuss is because she never had her own class, never had respect, and didn’t really have many friends. I personally like to imagine that Virginia and Leo are actually the same age.
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| Leo speaking to Ms. Malkin in her apartment. |
If I were to make a nitpick about the movie, as well as most of the songs being out of place and a handful of gross jokes, I personally don’t like the designs of the kindergarten students: They look more like fish than mammals!
In conclusion, while not as well known or as popular other well-known 2023 animated movies such as Nimona, The Boy and the Heron, or especially Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Leo is still a lot of fun that will be remembered for being better than Disney’s feature that year, Wish. Just look at these ratings on Rotten Tomatoes!
Rating: 3.9 stars out of 5
