I had absolutely no idea what to expect going into this movie, but a weird comedy musical about a classroom pet was definitely not on the table.

Let us clear up exactly what this is. Leo (2023) is an animated Netflix film starring Adam Sandler as a 74-year-old tuatara (a rare reptile that can live over a century) and Bill Burr as his cynical turtle terrarium-mate. For the most part, I really enjoyed a lot of this movie. The humor actually lands, the animation is great, and I loved the overall vibe of a grumpy old reptile imparting unwarranted life advice to fifth graders.

But then, out of nowhere, the characters start singing.

I hated every single time they sang. The musical numbers in this film feel incredibly out of place, awkward, and borderline hurtful to my ears. They did absolutely nothing to keep my attention. In fact, every single time a song started up, I immediately picked up my phone and started scrolling until the music stopped. The movie would build up some fantastic comedic momentum, only to slam on the brakes so a CGI child could sing an annoying, half-spoken melody.

However, if I mentally block out the music, the core of the film is surprisingly great. If I just close my eyes and pretend none of those terrible songs ever existed, this movie is extremely charming, funny, and full of heart. Adam Sandler and Bill Burr have fantastic comedic chemistry as grumpy old classroom pets, and the jokes are genuinely clever.

It is a very easy watch, provided you have your phone ready to distract you during the musical numbers.