JASON EVANS' 100-WORD REVIEWS: Arthur the King

 An uplifting adventure

Film critic Jason Evans has made it his mission to tell you everything you need to know about movies in less time than it takes to fall in love with a pooch. His reviews are exactly 100 words long (99 is not enough, but 101 is too long). Here is his 100-word review of Arthur the King.

The Premise: Mark Wahlberg plays Michael Light, the leader of an adventure racing team who is considered one of the best in the business but who has never won a world title. In the Dominican Republic for what will almost certainly be the last race of his career, Michael forms a connection with a stray dog that he names Arthur. Shockingly, the team encounters Arthur again hundreds of miles from where they met him and realize he has been following them the whole time. Arthur is old and has lived a hard life. When he becomes ill will Michael chose competition or his new companion? The film also stars Simu Liu (Shang-Chi, Barbie) and features voice-over narration from adventurer Bear Grylls.

The 100-Words: My low expectations (Mark Wahlberg is not exactly on a winning streak with critics) were greatly exceeded in this heart-warming film. The script does a nice job connecting us with Michael and his team while also giving us peeks at what life is like on the streets for Arthur. The thrill of the adventure racing also really comes through. Is it predictable? Yes. Are any of the folks here going to be in the running for awards? No. But it is nice family-friendly entertainment and I will freely admit that I had tears on my cheeks when Arthur got sick.