Dog Save The Queen
The Queen's Corgi is an animated film produced by nWave Pictures and directed by Vincent Kesteloot and Ben Stassen, the latter also producing and had previously worked on The Son of Bigfoot. It officially released on April 3rd, 2019 in Belgium, and July 5th, 2019 in the United Kingdom.
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is a lover of corgi dogs. Rex is the Queen's favourite, and lives with his three other corgi companions in a life of luxury at Buckingham Palace. However, following a visit made by President Donald Trump and his own (fictional) dog Mitzi, Rex finds himself far from home. Working together with new friends from an animal shelter, Rex aims to return home and reclaim his position of "Top Dog"!
Tropes:
- A Girl and Her X: That’s how it is in the first part of the film: as Rex gets older, his companionship with the Queen grows stronger, and he earns the title of “Top Dog”.
- Abhorrent Admirer: Mitzi, President Trump's Corgi, is overly frisky to the point of sexual harassment.
- Accessory-Wearing Cartoon Animal: Mitzi, with her pink doggie vest is halfway between this and Half-Dressed Cartoon Animal.
- Action Girl: Being the only female member of the gang of stray dogs, Wanda is seen doing really heroic actions when saving Rex from the fire at the palace.
- Animal Talk: All the dog characters can talk and can understand human speech (they can even read, as Rex read a magazine about his false death), however the human characters never hear them actually speak.
- Artistic License:
- Biology: The Queen sees the fake remains of Rex and comes to the conclusion that he was eaten by foxes. While it is possible for a small breed of dog to be attacked and killed by a fox, it is only in rare occasions (it’s even more unlikely for one to be eaten by a fox). On the other hand, larger dogs tend to attack foxes.
- Politics: In reality, not only did Donald Trump not have a dog, he was one of the few U.S. presidents to not actually have any pets at all.
- Be Careful What You Wish For: At the end, Rex renounces his claim to the "Top Dog" position to stay with his new friends. Charlie, who spent most of the movie scheming to obtain and hold that position, is thus the one that "gets" to go to America with Mitzi while Rex, the other Corgis, and the shelter dogs all stay with the Queen.
- Beware the Nice Ones:
- The Queen. She is almost always seen as very nice and affectionate to Rex, but when Rex accidentally bites President Trump in the “unmentionables”, the Queen turns angry and scolds him. That makes Rex believe the Queen doesn’t want him anymore.
- Also the stray dog Chief is this trope: silent, harmless and phlegmatic to the point of apathy but once his buttons have been pushed he proves to be the strongest dog in town and an unbeatable fighter.
- Big Damn Heroes: Wanda, Jack, and the rest of the gang of stray dogs when they managed to find a way in the palace to save Rex from the fire.
- Big "NO!": When the Queen finds out that Rex was eaten by foxes (Which wasn’t true, that was just a fake corpse using ketchup and a drumstick), she lets out “Oh nooo~!”
- Book Ends: The film starts and ends with the setting being Buckingham Palace.
- Break the Haughty: Averted: Rex looks down on other dogs, keeps thinking that he can do as he pleases just because he's royalty and the Queen's Top Dog, and doesn't become street-wise; though it is by sheer luck, he's never proven wrong.
- Chekhov's Gun: The Top Dog collar.
- Come Back, My Pet!: The Queen gets angry with Rex for causing a scene of disrespect to both her and President Trump, and presumably the next day, the Queen is looking for Rex, who must’ve gotten lost. However, she was to find out that Rex had been eaten by foxes (which is obviously not true, Rex was in a shelter).
- Cone of Shame: One of the background dogs in the film wears a cone around their neck.
- Dead Pet Sketch: Averted. However, Charlie DID manage to make the Queen believe Rex had gotten eaten. Rex was found alive and well; he was just looking for his true love.
- Disney Death: When Rex is pushed into the icy stream by Charlie, who wanted him to drown. Rex is later rescued and taken to a shelter.
- Dogs Love Being Praised: It’s obvious in the film. Rex loves getting praised by the Queen and loves receiving pampering from her.
- Drowning Unwanted Pets: Subverted. Rex is obviously not unwanted: he’s the favourite of the Queen’s corgis, but Charlie attempts to drown him after Rex gets scolded by the Queen and making him believe that he is unwanted by Her Majesty and that the Pope is in need of dogs.
- Ears as Hair: The way Wanda’s ears are designed makes them look like silky and shiny hair.
- Easily Forgiven: Even if Charlie was the one who caused the fire at the palace, he is easily forgiven by Rex and is supposedly given the title as “Top Dog”, though it’s obvious to the Queen that Rex already is.
- Free-Range Pets: Subverted. At least...that’s what it looks like because it seems like the Corgis are always running across the palace.
- Funny Photo Phrase: This movie has a running gag where President Trump pulls others in for selfies while saying "cheesesteak!", including the Queen.
- Furry Reminder: Charlie makes multiple dog noises throughout the movie: most noticeably the dog-like howl when he alerts the Queen about finding the fake remains of Rex.
- Go to Your Room!: The Queen sends Rex to his room after he bites Trump in the you-know-whats.The Queen: Dismissed!
- Gold Digger: At first, Wanda is interested in Rex only because he's royalty. However, she genuinely falls in love with him by the end of the film.
- Green-Eyed Monster: The film's main antagonist is Charlie, who is envious of Rex's "Top Dog" status, and attempts to kill him and usurp the position.
- Groin Attack: Rex bites Trump in the "unmentionables" after Mitzi pursues him.
- Heroic Pet Story: In the scene when Charlie attempts to kill Wanda and Rex by letting them get buried in a large heap of Rex’s merchandise and setting the pile on fire, Bernard the St. Bernard mentions that he once played a heroic act when he rushed into a burning building to save someone.
- The High Queen: Unlike how a bunch of other media portrays the Queen (extremely prissy and sometimes even mean and greedy), this film portrays the Queen as sweet, caring, benevolent, and especially affectionate to Rex, although she can get pretty firm sometimes. This film most likely has the most accurate portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II.
- I Lied: Exactly what Charlie did: he made Rex believe that the Pope is in need of some furry friends, however, he only did that just to get rid of him and become the new “Top Dog”. He also lied about Rex’s death, but in reality, Rex was found alive in a shelter.
- Karmic Rape: The implied fate of Charlie, who, as the new Top Dog, is taken to America to be Mitzi's mate.
- Kill It with Fire: In the climax, Charlie sets a mound of Rex’s merchandise (where Rex and Wanda were buried in) on fire, expecting the two said dogs to be burned in it.
- Loyal Animal Companion: That’s how Rex is to the Queen. He’s “Top Dog” for goodness sake!
- Makeup Is Evil: Mitzi wears lipstick and eyeshadow, and she's a creepy Abhorrent Admirer to Rex.
- Meaningful Name: Rex is Latin for "King", while Charlie was named after the now King Charles III. The other two royal corgis, Margaret and Nelson, are likely named after two prominent figures in English history, Margaret Thatcher (or perhaps the Queen's late sister Princess Margaret) and Horatio Nelson.
- National Animal Stereotypes: Rex, Charlie, Margaret and Nelson are British Corgis.
- Never Trust a Trailer: In the first trailer that was released for this film, it was believed that the film would simply be a story about Rex’s companionship with the Queen. However, in the second trailer, as more information about the film was released, it was revealed that Rex was sent to a shelter and he has to find his way back to the Palace.
- Oh, Crap!: The Queen’s reaction at seeing the fake remains of Rex that Charlie arranged and assuming he was eaten by foxes.
- Parental Bonus: Most jokes about the American political figures (Donald and Melania Trump) visiting the British royals would fly over the kids' head.
- Pets Versus Strays: In the scene where Rex and Charlie are at St. James Park, they are both chased by a hoard of geese.
- Pounds Are Animal Prisons: The animal shelter Rex is brought to is portrayed as a prison for dogs, even being run as a dog fighting ring by Tyson. However, in a subversion, the dogs could easily escape but prefer not to, because living on the streets is even worse.
- The Rival: Charlie envies Rex's position as top dog, which is why he lures Rex out of the palace and tries to murder him.
- Saint-Bernard Rescue: Bernard is one of the pound dogs who help save Rex from the fire.
- Stiff Upper Lip: All four royal Corgis fit the "snobbish Brit" stereotype in different ways.
- Stray Animal Story: Rex ends up becoming a stray when he is taken to a shelter after being rescued from the frozen stream. However, he goes back to being a pet again when he is found in the palace okay.
- Shout-Out: Nelson’s mentioning of the 1992 Windsor Castle fire, as well as the mentioning of the character Katniss Everdeen, who is the main character of the film The Hunger Games, with both said film and The Queen’s Corgi distributed by Lionsgate Pictures.
- Tropey, Come Home: Exactly what Rex does: After being scolded by the Queen, he wanders off from the palace following Charlie, who tells him the Pope is in need of new dogs.
