Tampa Bay Times by Steve Persall

The Secret Life of Pets is funnier than Zootopia and fresher than Finding Dory. Bonus points for a genuinely touching finale that had me crying behind my 3-D glasses.

New York Daily News by Raakhee Mirchandani

Here's something dog people and cat people can agree on: The Secret Life of Pets is hilarious, sweet and as fun for parents as the brats they take with them to the movies.

Variety by Peter Debruge

The formula may be familiar, but the personalities are completely fresh, yielding a menagerie of loveable — if downright ugly — cartoon critters banding together to help these two incompatible roommates from ending up on the streets.

Rolling Stone by Peter Travers

An animated fluffball that does everything to drive you crazy and ends up by being totally irresistible.

San Francisco Chronicle by Peter Hartlaub

Laughs are laughs, whether you know some of the punch lines ahead of time or not. And The Secret Life of Pets has plenty of laughs.

RogerEbert.com by Brian Tallerico

The disposable, summer diversion that many families will be looking for as temperatures rise and the start of school seems so far away, but most won’t be able to remember after they see it.

Philadelphia Inquirer by Steven Rea

In much the same way that the smash "Zootopia" demonstrated that creatures of different culture and class and species are better off when they come together, The Secret Life of Pets is a testament to teamwork and friendship and fixing the rifts that divide us. Let the fur - and the warm, fuzzy feelings - fly.

New York Post by Sara Stewart

Albert Brooks shows up as a red-tailed hawk whose desire to help clashes with his killer instincts; Dana Carvey is pitch-perfect as the ancient basset hound whose back legs are in a wheelchair.

The A.V. Club by Katie Rife

As it progresses, The Secret Life Of Pets starts to overreach dramatically, and loses some of its charm in the process.

USA Today by Brian Truitt

Secret Life anchors itself on an oh-so-familiar concept but sparkles most when imagining some of its crazier shenanigans.

Screen Daily by Wendy Ide

The latest film from Chris Renaud (Despicable Me) and his team is a madcap caper full of densely-packed sight gags, dizzying action set pieces and a healthy side-helping of Renaud trademark silliness.

IndieWire

Moves like a bat out of hell from frame one, though if you’re looking for any kind of emotion you might be barking up the wrong tree.

Slant Magazine by Kenji Fujishima

The film's messy pile-up of comic diversions can be exhilarating in the moment—the chaos of an id given free rein.

The Telegraph by Robbie Collin

To borrow a screenwriting buzz-phrase, "fun and games" is all you get, and the lack of meaningful connective tissue between the antics means the film begins to flag far earlier than it should.

Time Out London by Cath Clarke

There are some funny-sweet observations about pets and our projections on to them. And the animation is expressive.... But the manic pace, piling on the action sequences, is exhausting.

The Hollywood Reporter by Jordan Mintzer

Like the professional dogwalker who can’t exactly keep count of Max and his cohorts, it feels like the filmmakers are juggling too many chatty creatures at once, while trying to maintain a plot that tends to grow more outlandish as the story progresses.

Empire

An affable adventure with a strong voice cast. What it lacks in originality, it claws back with strong visual gags and a witty script.

Movie Nation by Roger Moore

Speaking of Looney, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention how violent this pre-tween farce is. Slapfights, brawls, violent death and near-death experiences abound. Along with butt-sniffing and toilet-sipping (at a party) gags.