ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — “Fixed” and “Dog of God,” two very different boundary-pushing animated films, may each center around dogs, but one is a far better boy than the other. Read our 828reviewsNOW feature for more.

“FIXED” (2025, 87 min., directed by Genndy Tartakovsky)

Genndy Tartakovsky, creator of acclaimed cartoons like “Samurai Jack,” “Dexter’s Laboratory” and “Star Wars: Clone Wars,” is the director of “Fixed,” an adult animated film about a dog hitting the town before he gets neutered…now streaming on Netflix!

While “Fixed” is animated in Tartakovsky’s signature style, it lacks the universality which made his shows so successful. For one, it is unclear who “Fixed” is meant to appeal to. It sure isn’t kids – “Fixed” is about as adult as they possibly come, filled with references to sex, drugs and other illicit topics – and most grown-ups will likely balk at it, too. The movie is mostly just gross. If you ever wondered what dog testes would look like in the “Samurai Jack” art style, Tartakovsky has you covered.

It feels like “Fixed” was meant to work like an R-rated version of “The Secret Life of Pets,” like Tartakovsky wanted to reveal the inner thoughts and hidden lives of our pets, but only if they were all perverts. Not one of the principal cast of characters escapes without an off-putting quirk, from protagonist Bull’s overcharged libido to his buddy Lucky’s penchant for munching on sidewalk cat poop. It’s almost unfortunate that the voice cast – featuring a terrific Kathryn Hahn, an amusing Idris Elba and a very good Adam DeVine as Bull, for starters – are as consistently great as they are when they’re bringing to life some of the foulest things you might see in a movie this year.

In a way, I admire the audacity. I love the work of John Waters and applauded the orgiastic bacchanalia of “Babylon” a couple of years ago, and I can acknowledge that “Fixed” was probably aiming for a similar echelon of “bad taste.” However, whether it’s the fact that it follows animated dogs or that the animated dogs are rendered in beautiful 2D animation doing disgusting things, but I can’t rally behind the filthy vision of “Fixed” in the same way as its contemporaries. It’s just too gross for my liking and made worse by its varying levels of competence: there is no camp factor as a saving grace for animation as polished as this, but nor is there an artistic defense for a script this weak. If you’re an animation fan hunting for the next great Tartakovsky project in “Fixed,” you’re barking up the wrong tree.

Rating: 2/5

“Fixed” is now streaming on Netflix.

“DOG OF GOD” (2025, 95 min., directed by Lauris Ābele and Raitis Ābele)

(Courtesy: Tritone Studio)

“Dog of God” is a new animated film out of Latvia, the home country of “Flow,” last year’s Oscar-winning animal odyssey. Beyond that shared national origin, “Dog of God” is about as far afield of “Flow” as you can get. Co-directed by siblings Lauris Ābele and Raitis Ābele, “Dog of God” is a rotoscope-animated nightmare comedy, capturing the paranoia and hypocrisy of 17th century society after a young woman is put on trial for witchcraft in a rainy European village.

Read our review of “Flow” here.

Oscillating between a blowhard priest and his simpering assistant, an impotent dandy and his delicacy-addicted wife, a mysterious old man who claims to be a werewolf and the accused young woman, the film depicts sordid debauchery through a miasma of neon colors, hazy animations and a terrific sense of humor about its awful characters. Watching “Dog of God” is like taking a psychedelic stroll through a pagan boutique: the colors are popping, the imagery is surreal and there are unexpected aromas in the air.

If “Fixed” pushed my limits, “Dog of God” does the opposite. With its presentation of gnarly violence and strange sensuality against a strong backbone of feminist ideology, “Dog of God” is an example of the exact kind of films I love to see. It is a horror film with verve, combining social commentary with taboo-shattering craftsmanship. There is a strong critique of the church, court and bourgeoise embedded into the story here, and by the end, I found myself incredibly moved, despite the preceding parade of pustules, scrotums and paunches. “Dog of God” is the good kind of gross.

“Dog of God” premiered in June at the Tribeca Film Festival and is still waiting for distribution in the United States, but if you can catch it on the festival trail, this is an animated experience you won’t want to miss.

Rating: 4/5