Movie · 2008 · Animation, Family, Adventure, Comedy · 1h 38m · PG · English
Curator score: 3.7/10 (859.9K ratings)
Fully Awesome.
Overview
Bolt is the star of the biggest show in Hollywood. The only problem is, he thinks it's real. After he's accidentally shipped to New York City and separated from Penny, his beloved co-star and owner, Bolt must harness all his "super powers" to find a way home.
Ratings
Curator score: 3.7/10
IMDb: 6.8/10
Letterboxd: 3.19/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 90%
Metacritic: 67
TMDB: 6.5/10
Director
Chris Williams, Byron Howard
Production
Walt Disney Animation Studios, Walt Disney Pictures
Cast
John Travolta, Miley Cyrus, Susie Essman, Mark Walton, Malcolm McDowell, James Lipton, Greg Germann, Diedrich Bader, Nick Swardson, J.P. Manoux, Dan Fogelman, Kari Wahlgren, Chloë Grace Moretz, Randy Poffo, Ronn Moss, Grey DeLisle, Sean Donnellan, Lino DiSalvo, Todd Cummings, Tim Mertens
Where to watch
Disney Plus
Curator Review
Verdict
A charming, fast-moving family adventure with a strong emotional hook: a dog who believes his TV superhero life is real. It blends road-movie energy, comedy, and surprisingly sincere themes about identity, loyalty, and the difference between performance and reality.
Best for
families looking for an easy crowd-pleaser
viewers who like animal-led adventures
fans of lighthearted Disney animation with heart
people who enjoy stories about found family and self-discovery
Skip if
you want a more sophisticated or subversive animated film
you dislike sentimental family movies
you need nonstop action over character-driven comedy
you are looking for a purely adult-oriented joke density
Overview
Bolt is one of Disney’s more underrated 2000s animated features, a movie that starts with a simple high-concept gag and keeps finding more emotional mileage in it. The premise is clever, but the real pleasure is watching the film turn a deluded TV star into a genuinely vulnerable character without losing its sense of fun.
Worth noting
The road-trip structure gives the movie momentum, and the supporting duo around Bolt adds a lot of personality and comic texture. It has that late-2000s Disney polish: clean visuals, broad humor, and a sincere emotional core that lands better than you might expect.
Bottom line
What makes it stick is how it treats fame, performance, and loyalty in kid-friendly terms. It’s sweet rather than sharp, but it’s also sturdier and more thoughtful than its reputation suggests, especially for viewers who like animated films with a little heart under the comedy.
Top Letterboxd reviews
👽 Zara 👽 (3★) · 3032 likes
Disney Exec 1: okay shit we got a make a new 3d animated film, what ideas do we have ?
Disney Exec 2: uuuuuh what if we make it about animals ?
Disney Exec 1: for fucks sake calvin, do you know how many films we've made about animals, come on we need more then that, what can we add to that idea ? Alright anyone else ?
Disney Exec 3: oh ! what about superheroes ? we can try… more
lucy (4★) · 2397 likes
one of the most underrated animated films ever period
Joe A (3★) · 1970 likes
Me in 2008: Bolt, a movie about a dog that thinks he has superpowers. John Travolta was a weird choice.
Me in 2023: Bolt, a movie about Hollywood’s exploitation of child actors and animals. John Travolta was still a weird choice.
Kyler The Film Fox 🦊 (3.5★) · 1512 likes
The Truman Dog
James (Schaffrillas) (2.5★) · 1153 likes
If the main character was voiced by Adam West it would've been good
2000 · Adventure, Animation, Comedy · 1h 18m · G · Curator 7.6/10 (1.1M ratings) · Where to watch: Disney Plus
A sharp, funny animated comedy with a strong personality and a surprisingly warm character arc.
Topics
animated adventure, family comedy, road trip, dog protagonist, Hollywood satire, heartwarming, 2000s animation, identity crisis, found family, feel-good