Hotel for Dogs: One of the cutest canine cinematic capers of all-time hits Neon

Hotel For Dogs (PG, 96mins) Directed by Thor Freudenthal ***

Orphaned siblings Andi (Emma Roberts) and Bruce (Jake T. Austin) have just about run out of chances.

Now living with their fifth set of foster parents in three years, the teen and tween have pushed their social worker Bernie’s (Don Cheadle) patience to the limit. One more screw-up and they’ll be split up.

However, living with the Scudders certainly isn’t a cakewalk. Carl (Kevin Dillon) is a wannabe rock star, more interested in dropping his rock manifesto on the world than in the kids, while Lois (Lisa Kudrow) serves up TV dinners and other inedible delicacies each evening.

But the real problem for the two tearaways is Friday. For the past three years, they have been hiding their beloved dog in alleys, garages and woods. And after a brush with the pound, Andi explains to her little brother that they may have to find Friday a real home. Friday has other ideas, though – his nose for trouble leads him to the abandoned Hotel Francis Duke. Already populated by other homeless pooches, the condemned building is the perfect place to hide out from the dog catchers. The only problem is, it also means Andi and Bruce have even more mouths to feed.

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Based on Lois Duncan’s 1971 novel of the same name, Hotel is a flawed, but fun entry into the canine cinematic canon.

Director Freudenthal never lets the story drag and keeps child and adult audiences entertained with some slick, colourful visuals (often cleverly shot from dog height) and CSI-style editing, which works especially well when evoking a pooch’s hyper sense of smell. He also does a great job of bringing Bruce’s Wallace and Gromit-esque contraptions to life, with everything from a shoe vending machine to motorised sheep and a doggy poop-bagger inspiring awe and plenty of chuckles.

However, the appearance of dog-eared, popular-culture canine clichés like fire hydrants is a little tiresome, while the constant Pedigree and Pringles product placement does wear a little thin after a while.

Likewise, the script by Jeff Lowell (John Tucker Must Die) and TV’s Kim Possible duo Bob Schooley and Mark McCorkle is something of a mixed bag.

For while there’s plenty of wit, sass and invention to lift this 2009 tale above the average kid flick, it is filled with too many clichéd cartoon villains (the nasty dogcatcher, the tyrant foster mom), some crazy contrivances and leaps in logic (so why was the electricity still on in an abandoned hotel?) and signposts its ending waaay in advance. It’s also a pity that after studiously avoiding any hint of sentimentality it goes into sugar overdrive in the last act, trying to create some kind of doggie version of Schindler’s List.

That this doesn’t turn into a dog is credit to an engaging young cast, especially the dependable Roberts (Nancy Drew), a sympathetic turn from the equally reliable Cheadle (Hotel Rwanda), and a fabulous coterie of charming character-filled canines. And best of all, not one of them delivers a wisecrack.

Hotel for Dogs is now available to stream on Neon.