I never thought I’d see Mr. Worldwide (Pitbull) animated as a one-eyed dog, but that’s just part of the charm of this year’s new animated musical movie, Ugly Dolls. It’s a kid-friendly flick with colorful innocence that takes on a heavy topic: challenging the notion of the word “ugly.”
Goofy-looking doll Moxy, voiced by Kelly Clarkson, is happy in her whimsical town of Uglyville with all of her misshapen friends, including the smooth-talking Ugly Dog, voiced by Pitbull. However, this doll knows that there’s something bigger to life; a child that she should be paired with. On a quest to find her child, Moxy and a group of her “ugly” friends stumble upon the Institute of Perfection, a boot camp for pretty dolls ruled by Lou, voiced by Nick Jonas. Lou challenges Moxy and her friends to pass a series of tests to determine whether the dolls are ready for their human companions. He is convinced the ugly dolls won’t be able to pass based on their appearance. After learning an ugly secret about where the ugly dolls came from, Moxy and her friends are more motivated than ever to show Lou and the perfect dolls that they’re worthy of love.
Ugly Dolls functions as an animated musical, greatly helped by Kelly Clarkson and Nick Jonas’ musical abilities. Songs include a body positivity hit, “Broken and Beautiful,” a song that takes back the word ugly, aptly titled “Ugly,” and more silly tunes.
The animated film is short, running just over 90 minutes. While the film doesn’t have much for parents, it’s a great chance for parents to take a breather, mentally make a grocery list, and enjoy Nick Jonas and Kelly Clarkson singing about being beautiful and ugly.
Ugly Dolls is appropriate for all age kiddos and teaches that no one is ugly, instead what makes us beautiful are our differences. The film teaches kids to celebrate their differences and not place value on looks more than what’s inside. Just don’t be surprised if your kids start happily calling themselves ugly.
Release Date: May 3
Rating: PG
