Line #59 Film/CliffordTheBigRedDog


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cliffordthebigreddog.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:350:''[[TagLine Adventure has never been bigger.]]'']]
3	->''"[[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor I wish you were big and strong]] and the world couldn't hurt us."''
4	-->-- '''Emily'''
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6	''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' is a film by [[Creator/{{Paramount}} Paramount Pictures]] and Creator/EntertainmentOne that was released in both theaters and Creator/ParamountPlus on November 10, 2021 in the US (by Paramount) and in Canada (by [=eOne=]) on that same day in theaters. It’s based on the book series of the same name. Literature/CliffordTheBigRedDog. The film later debuted in the UK/Ireland (by [=eOne=]) on December 10th of that year. Shortly after its release, Paramount ordered a sequel.
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8	The story is about Emily Elizabeth Howard (Creator/DarbyCamp), a middle schooled girl who gets bullied and lives with her mother and slobbish but well-intentioned uncle Casey (Creator/JackWhitehall) who finds a red dog has stowed away in her backpack and over time grows gigantic in size and has to help him overcome the difficulties of society.
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10	The film also stars Creator/{{Tony Hale}} as Zack Tieran, Creator/SiennaGuillory as Maggie Howard, David Alan Grier as Mr. Packard, Creator/{{Russell Wong}} as Mr. Yu, Creator/{{Kenan Thompson}} as Clifford's veterinarian and Creator/{{John Cleese}} as Mr. Bridwell.
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12	'''Previews:''' [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IrW37406tkY First Look]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4zH5iYM4wJo Trailer 1]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsE3aHTkQYk Trailer 2]], [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVzW5ydIKPI International Trailer]].
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14	Not to be confused with WesternAnimation/CliffordsReallyBigMovie.
15	----
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17	!''Clifford the Big Red Dog'' contains examples of:
18	* AnAesop: This film is filled with them.
19	** {{Be Yourself}}.
20	** Our differences don't matter and that love is the ultimate solution to all.
21	* AbandonedPetInABox: Downplayed, Mr. Bridwell finding Clifford at the park fighting with some pigeons.
22	* AdaptationalAngstUpgrade: In the original books, Emily Elizabeth comes from a typical suburban family and she becomes Clifford's owner with no issues. Here, she's the lonely child of a single mother in the care of a slacker uncle and she has to keep Clifford a secret because her building doesn't allow pets. The plot is also more high stakes whereas the books mainly focused on the trouble Clifford innocently gets into because of his large size and curiosity.
23	* AdaptationExpansion: It appears there is way more detail here about Emily, and Clifford's life in general.
24	* AdaptationalAlternateEnding: Unlike all other Clifford media like the books and the TV series, the Howards don't move to a rural area of the mainland U.S.(books) or to Bridwell Island (TV series).
25	* AdaptationalLocationChange: The film places their setting in New York City, whereas in the original Clifford book and TV series, they live in the country or on Bridwell/Birdwell Island off the coast of an unnamed city, presumably based off of New York.
26	* AdaptedOut: Emily Elizabeth's father, and Clifford's TV series exclusive companions, T-Bone and Cleo, are all left out of the film.
27	* AdaptationalDyeJob: In the original books and TV series, Emily Elizabeth is drawn as a blonde girl. In the film, she's a brunette with dark brown/auburn hair.
28	* AdultsAreUseless: [[spoiler:Averted at the middle of the film where everyone makes a change of heart and help Emily-Elizabeth break into Lyfegro to save Clifford, as well as going along with her speech at the park.]]
29	* AgeLift: Emily-Elizabeth is a middle school student here; in the original books, she is in elementary school.
30	* AlphaBitch: Florence, who is the antagonist in the first act before being pushed aside for the slightly more threatening [[BigBad Zack Tieran]].
31	* AmbiguouslyAbsentParent: Unlike in the original book series and previous adaptations, Emily Elizabeth lives with a single mother, but it's not made clear whether her father died or left the family.
32	* ArtisticLicenseBiology: A dog the size of Clifford would likely not be able to grow much larger because he would not have the bone density strong enough to support his own weight due to the SquareCubeLaw.
33	* AsianAndNerdy: Owen Yu, Emily's only friend.
34	* BatmanInMyBasement: Emily and Casey trying to keep Clifford a secret. Especially from Mr. Packard.
35	* BigApplesauce: This film takes place chiefly in New York City.
36	* BigBad: Zack Tieran, the owner of the genetics company Lyfegrow.
37	* ABoyAndHisX: A girl and her (big, red) dog.
38	* CanonForeigner: Most of the cast besides Emily, Clifford, Emily's mother and Brutus if you count him as an adaptation of T-Bone.
39	* ChekhovsGun: Emily encounters a shopkeeper who accidentally lost his hand while chopping up meat (and became a vegetarian as a result). Later, the Lyfegro employees threaten the protagonists with a high-voltage stun gun, but said shopkeeper just grabs it with his (non-conductive) prosthetic hand and is unharmed.
40	* CompanyCrossReferences: Owen uses a ''Franchise/SpongeBobSquarePants'' flash drive at one point. Paramount distributes the movies for that franchise.
41	* CuteMute: Clifford, unlike all the other adaptations, doesn't talk at all here and functions like a regular dog who comically understands English.
42	* DoingInTheScientist: The explanation of Clifford's size change is all but stated to be magical as he goes from smaller than a cat to the size of an elephant overnight, removing most of the MaybeMagicMaybeMundane from previous versions of the character.
43	* GiantFood: This is the goal of the company Lyfegro through genetic engineering. Unfortunately for them, they spent millions on projects that went nowhere. They're after Clifford in an attempt to isolate what makes him so big and replicate it.
44	* GonnaNeedMoreX: [[https://twitter.com/cliffordmovie/status/1417485774677704704 This tweet]] released in July 2021, announcing the film's debut in the Toronto International Film Festival, features the tagline "We're gonna need a bigger theater" with emphasis on "bigger".
45	* HateSink: Zack Tieran. For good or for ill, his main purpose for even being in the movie is to provide conflict and be detestable while doing so.
46	* InstantHumiliationJustAddYouTube: Emily-Elizabeth spilling her cans going viral on some social media site.
47	* InstantWebHit: Clifford attracting the attention of everyone and spreading through social media.
48	* ItWasWithYouAllAlong: Mr. Bridwell telling Emily-Elizabeth that the only way to solve her problem is by standing up for herself.
49	* IOweYouMyLife: When Clifford saves a man from falling off a TV antenna, who later aids Emily and Casey along with everyone else in breaking Clifford out of Lyfegro.
50	* JerkWithTheHeartOfAJerk: Zach Tieran of course.
51	* {{Kaiju}}: Clifford is an elephant-sized canine with an unusually red-colored fur.
52	* LickedByTheDog: AlphaBitch Florence gets it from Clifford and she is unable to retaliate other than expressing disgust, effectively ruining her credibility as a threatening school bully.
53	* TheLittleShopThatWasntThereYesterday: Emily's adoption of Clifford is facilitated by Mr. Bridwell, a man who runs an animal rescue out of a tent, justifying its mobility. A veterinary nurse recognizes it from her long career as the source of many strange animal cases that invariably improved people's lives.
54	* MythologyGag: At one point, Casey calls Owen's dog Brutus "T-Bone".
55	* RichBitch: There is a notable gap in class between Emily-Elizabeth, who won attendance from a kind of lottery, and her schoolmates, something Florence mocks her for by calling her "Food Stamp". Florence rants at one point that she resents Emily getting a free ride when everyone else had to pay their way in, [[{{Hypocrite}} but at one point mocks Emily for actually putting in the work]] to collect for a school can drive instead of her parents paying for it like everyone else's did.
56	* RousingSpeech: Emily Elizabeth towards the end convincing almost everyone that differences don't matter, and that love is more important than all.
57	* SwissArmyTears: Clifford still becomes big from Emily-Elizabeth's love but it doesn't happen until she sheds a tear on him while sharing her wish for everyone to be more loving like him. The trailers emphasize it by making the tear glow prominently, but it [[NeverTrustATrailer doesn't glow in the film]].
58	* WilhelmScream: Used a few times in the movie but it can be heard the loudest when Clifford runs up and bounces a large exercise ball up into the air with a man in it and the man lets out the infamous scream.
59	* UnconventionalVehicleChase: Clifford, Emily, and her friends and family being chased by Lyfegro's security guards and the cops towards the end to get to Mr. Bridwell for his answer.
60	* VillainBall: The movie’s conflict hinges on Lyfegro trying to steal Clifford instead of simply asking Emily Elizabeth for permission to take a DNA sample from him, a simple and harmless process of swabbing his cheek for a sample of his saliva.
61	* VillainyFreeVillain: The only things that makes Zac Tieran and Lyfgro, whose goal is trying to solve world hunger, villains is due to PoorCommunicationKills because they try to steal Clifford, in order to find out why he is so big, from Emily. An issue that could have been easily avoided had they simply asked for permission to take a few unintrusive medical tests and collect DNA samples from him instead, something that could easily be done by vet.

Context Film / CliffordTheBigRedDog