Nasonex Bee In Galoshes

Oops!  I saw a movie over a month ago and didn’t write anything about it.  And now it’s gone.  With that in mind, I’ll keep it brief.

Puss In Boots:  Two things to keep in mind before you continue, as they may have influenced my appreciation of this movie:

1.  I love cats.  If you know me, this comes as no surprise.  I’m not the male version of “crazy cat lady,” but I do love all things feline.

2.  I totally dig the Shrek movies.  Apparently this makes me uncool.  That’s fine with me.  I don’t give one gliding fuck about having “geek cred.”

OK.  So.

I dug Puss In Boots.  Not the best animated flick of the year (that honor goes to Rango, by a country mile (although I haven’t yet seen Tintin)), and sure, it’s geared a little more towards kids than the series that spawned it, but I spent most of the runtime smiling.  Antonio Banderas once again nails the tongue-in-cheekiness of Puss and seems to be having a blast poking fun at himself through overcooked machismo and in-your-face confidence.  Zach Galifiniakkalikikakkis does a good job bringing the opposite aesthetic as Puss’ friend-turned-foe-turned-friend-turned-foe-turned friend, Humpty Dumpty.  A completely understated vocal turn for a guy known for his more “colorful” roles.  In fact, I didn’t even know it was him until the credits rolled.  I always find myself playing, “guess the voice” when I see animated stuff, and for awhile I thought it was Patton Oswalt.  Salma Hayek voices rival/love interest Kitty Softpaws, and, no- the Desperado reunion between she & Banderas wasn’t lost on me.  They didn’t exactly play it up, but it colored my experience, nonetheless.  Who else?  Oh, Billy Bob Thornton & Amy Sedaris as grown-up Jack & Jill.  Creepy.  Just effin’ creepy.

The plot?  Oh, you know, whatever.  Puss is living in exile after unknowingly helping Humpty rob a bank, or something, but then gets a chance to re-friend him and clear his name…

…really, it’s pretty basic.  I’m not saying there’s no plot, or that it’s a bad plot, or that the plot doesn’t matter, but seriously, I don’t think you came here for an in-depth synopsis of an animated film starring a horny Latino tabby cat and a talking egg.  This is one of those flicks where the plot takes a back seat to the visual and comedic style.

What works?  Well, the character stuff, visual style, and comedy mentioned above, for starters.  Also, the COMPLETE LACK of Shrek references, even though I already stated that I enjoy those flicks, was a refreshing surprise.  Kudos, Dreamworks, for letting this thing live on its own.  In fact, much like Shrek 4, the pop culture references were kept to such a minimum that I only vaguely remember seeing one or two… and after some mental straining I can’t even tell you what they might have been.  Oh, and there’s a dance-off scene between Puss & Kitty that was pretty great.

What didn’t work?  Not much.  At one point Puss & Humpty run into an aged Jack (“Beanstalk” Jack, not “& Jill” Jack), which was neat, but when the adventure leads them to his magic legumes, and subsequently the giant’s castle in the clouds, things slow down a bit.  Mostly because said giant is long dead.  So they go to get the golden goose (another get-rich-quick scheme by Mr. Dumpty), but only run into minor adversity at that point.  I would have had old Jack accompany them, only to find another giant up there (or maybe a different castle & giant, or something), and let that whole scenario play out again for us (and maybe get the main plot moving along sooner than they did), but… I don’t work for Hollywood, so what the hell do I know.

So, that’s about it.  No reinvention of the wheel here, but you could do a lot worse in terms of kid-friendly animation (I didn’t see The Smurfs and will not be seeing the latest Alvin & The Chipmunks abortion, but I’m sure they fit into the “a lot worse” category).  Again, this one’s long gone from the ‘plexes, but should be around soon for home use, so if you’ve got a lazy Sunday coming at you in the near future (after February 24^th, apparently), give it a spin.  If you’ve got kids, even better.  Also, if you’re allergic to cats, you won’t have to waste any Nasonex® spray.

7 out of 10 “Ohhh” Cats