Garfield: The Movie
A live-action movie based off the popular comic strip Garfield. It was released in 2004 by 20th Century Fox. It starred Bill Murray as Garfield, Breckin Meyer as Jon, and Jennifer Love Hewitt as Liz. It was directed by Joel Cohen.
The plot deals with Garfield, as lazy and fat as ever, being the extreme Jerkass and Deadpan Snarker he is. Jon Arbuckle buys a dog named Odie because his extreme crush, Liz Wilson told him to. Needless to say, Garfield doesn't like this, but then Odie gets kidnapped by a villain named "Happy Chapman". Garfield sets out on an adventure to rescue Odie... and get back to his beloved chair!
The movie was followed with a sequel in 2006, called Garfield: A Tail of Two Kitties. In it, Liz goes to England to make a speech, and while she, Jon, and Garfield are there, Garfield gets his life mixed up with that of a English cat.
There were also three CGI DTV Non-Serial Movie from 2007, 2008, and 2009: Garfield Gets Real, about Garfield getting sick of his job as a comic strip character and going to the real world, Garfield's Fun Fest, about Garfield trying to get Arlene back from a cat named "Ramone", and Garfield's Pet Force, a 3D Movie Spin-Off showing the characters as superheroes.
- Actor Allusion: Bill Murray, well known for playing Peter Venkman in Ghostbusters, played Garfield in both movies. The animated Garfield was voiced by the late Lorenzo Music, who played Peter Venkman in The Real Ghostbusters.
- Disaster Dominoes: Garfield's destruction of Jon's living room. At the end, a large shelf falls and perfectly misses Garfield.
- Human-Focused Adaptation: The first movie came out at a time when in the comic, Liz looked down on Jon, when somehow she's madly in love with him in the movie. The comic would later follow suit.
- Let's See You Do Better: A collector's edition DVD of the first movie has a tool for making your own Garfield strips.
- Live Action Adaptation
- Real Song Theme Tune: Garfield turns on the TV and the song called "Hey Mama" by the Black Eyed Peas plays in its music video, which makes Odie dance. The song would repeat again in the contest, this time from the radio.
- Retcon: Jon buys Odie from a pet shop in the first movie, while in the strip, Jon's former roommate Lyman gave him to him.
- Risky Business Dance: The first movie's trailer.
- Shout-Out:
- The first movie has ones to Apocalypse Now, Cape Fear, The Lion King, Jerry Maguire, Apollo 13, and Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc.
- Also, Garfield watches TV at one point and sees a bit of Cheaper By the Dozen, Lassie, Old Yeller, Benji, Oh Heavenly Dog, Far From Home: The Adventures of Yellow Dog (all shows about dogs, which Garfield hates), and The Best Damn Sports Show Period (finally, something good).
- The Simpsons, and An Affair to Remember are on the TV at other points in the movie.
- Sphere Eyes: Garfield only. Which is slightly creepy to some, even for a CGI talking animal in a live action movie.
- Starring Special Effects