Review - Cats (2019)
Hey guys, Chuck here. Well, every so often, there is that one movie that get universally hated by several critics and reviewers. While there are some films, like 2015's Fant4stic, where I wholeheartedly agree with such sentiments, the same cannot be said for the film that I just watched, Cats. Based on the stage musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which in turn was based on Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot, this feature film was directed by Tom Hooper, who directed such films as the Oscar-winning The King's Speech in 2010 and Les Miserables in 2012. The film's first trailer was trashed by online commenters and movie news sites. However, even after that, and the negative critical response the film has received, I still decided to give it a fair chance. Now, keep in mind that my opinions on the movie are completely genuine. You are free to agree or disagree, but this is how I feel about the film. So, with that in mind, let's discuss the cinematic version of the musical Cats.
The movie starts off with a cat named Victoria being abandoned in London alleyway. She will be the audience surrogate, introducing the viewers to the world of the Jellicle cats. It is here that we learn that many cats are seeking to be chosen by the leader of the Jellicles, Old Deuteronomy, to ascend to what is known as the "Heaviside Layer," where a cat will be reborn into the life they've always wanted. Among the cats vying for this honor are Jennyanydots, the Rum Tum Tugger, Gus the Theater Cat, Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat, and Bustopher Jones, the cat about town. Meanwhile, a notorious criminal cat, Macavity, is also seeking to ascend to the Heaviside Layer, as he believes it is his birthright. Other cats we meet include Grizabella, Mr. Mistoffelees, and the list goes on.
One of the many targets of criticism this film has ben receiving has been the visual effects being used to make the actors appear to look like cats. The use of CGI fur and cat features has been described as "creepy looking" and marred in the uncanny valley. For me, the visual effects were a bit jarring at first, but after about ten minutes or so, I got used to it and just enjoyed the movie. Another criticism was the lack of a substantial plot in the movie, which once again, there is a plot that, very loosely, connects the musical numbers together. Keep in mind that the actual stage musical didn't have much of a plot either, so unless you haven't seen the musical on stage, or even the 1998 filmed version of the stage musical, then this complaint isn't even an issue. If anything, this movie ADDED a loose plot to what was, on stage, an assortment of musical numbers packaged together.
While we're on the subject of the musical numbers, the film's renditions of the musical numbers from the stage version are, for the most part, pretty good. The new renditions of songs like "Bustopher Jones," "Gus the Theater Cat," and "Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat" are pretty spot-on renditions. Taylor Swift's performance of the song "Macavity" was really good, and I was in awe with Jennifer Hudson's rendition of the iconic song "Memory." Unfortunately, I wasn't a fan of the song "The Rum Tum Tugger" by Jason Derulo. I don't know, the tempo just felt out of place with the rest of the movie, and while I'm glad that Jason Derulo didn't try to make this song into a rap tune, I just think it was the weakest of all the songs in the movie. Initially, I felt the same way about the song "Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer," but after seeing it within the context of the film, I didn't mind nearly as much. There is one new song, called "Beautiful Ghosts," and unlike the original song they attached to the film Les Miserables, this song actually does fit well with the rest of them, and is performed by Francesca Hayward.
Now, let's talk about the cast in this movie. Francesca Hayward was a terrific choice for Victoria, and as the audience surrogate, we experience the world of the Jellicle cats with her, which is unique for this film. I also really enjoyed the performances of Ian McKellen as Gus the Theater Cat, Idris Elba as Macavity, and Judi Dench as Old Deuteronomy. James Corden and Rebel Wilson were okay as Bustopher Jones and Jennyanydots, but their shtick did start to grow stale after a while as the movie went on. Taylor Swift's performance as Bombalurina was certainly a highlight, and many have stated that she was the best part of the movie. Unfortunately, just like the song of the same name, Jason Derulo as the Rum Tum Tugger was easily the weakest part of the movie. As much as I enjoyed the other characters, his was the one that felt a bit too distracting. But the one performance that I was amazed by was Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella. She was terrific, and definitely deserves more praise than she got from critics.
Overall, Cats is not a perfect film. It's not even a great film. However, I will concede that it is a unique type of film musical. While I feel that it would have worked better as a completely animated film, and not using motion capture to make real actors look like cats, I do applaud the effort done by Tom Hooper and his creative team. As someone who enjoyed the musical Cats, I'm glad that I saw it, and I definitely enjoyed the movie for what it was. Do I recommend seeing it in the theater? Not really. However, wait until the talk surrounding the film dies down a bit, and when it's available for digital download, or even on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K, give it a watch. Believe me, it'll probably be a much better viewing experience at home than it is on the big screen. I'm going to give Cats a rating of 3.9/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time.
The movie starts off with a cat named Victoria being abandoned in London alleyway. She will be the audience surrogate, introducing the viewers to the world of the Jellicle cats. It is here that we learn that many cats are seeking to be chosen by the leader of the Jellicles, Old Deuteronomy, to ascend to what is known as the "Heaviside Layer," where a cat will be reborn into the life they've always wanted. Among the cats vying for this honor are Jennyanydots, the Rum Tum Tugger, Gus the Theater Cat, Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat, and Bustopher Jones, the cat about town. Meanwhile, a notorious criminal cat, Macavity, is also seeking to ascend to the Heaviside Layer, as he believes it is his birthright. Other cats we meet include Grizabella, Mr. Mistoffelees, and the list goes on.
One of the many targets of criticism this film has ben receiving has been the visual effects being used to make the actors appear to look like cats. The use of CGI fur and cat features has been described as "creepy looking" and marred in the uncanny valley. For me, the visual effects were a bit jarring at first, but after about ten minutes or so, I got used to it and just enjoyed the movie. Another criticism was the lack of a substantial plot in the movie, which once again, there is a plot that, very loosely, connects the musical numbers together. Keep in mind that the actual stage musical didn't have much of a plot either, so unless you haven't seen the musical on stage, or even the 1998 filmed version of the stage musical, then this complaint isn't even an issue. If anything, this movie ADDED a loose plot to what was, on stage, an assortment of musical numbers packaged together.
While we're on the subject of the musical numbers, the film's renditions of the musical numbers from the stage version are, for the most part, pretty good. The new renditions of songs like "Bustopher Jones," "Gus the Theater Cat," and "Skimbleshanks the Railway Cat" are pretty spot-on renditions. Taylor Swift's performance of the song "Macavity" was really good, and I was in awe with Jennifer Hudson's rendition of the iconic song "Memory." Unfortunately, I wasn't a fan of the song "The Rum Tum Tugger" by Jason Derulo. I don't know, the tempo just felt out of place with the rest of the movie, and while I'm glad that Jason Derulo didn't try to make this song into a rap tune, I just think it was the weakest of all the songs in the movie. Initially, I felt the same way about the song "Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer," but after seeing it within the context of the film, I didn't mind nearly as much. There is one new song, called "Beautiful Ghosts," and unlike the original song they attached to the film Les Miserables, this song actually does fit well with the rest of them, and is performed by Francesca Hayward.
Now, let's talk about the cast in this movie. Francesca Hayward was a terrific choice for Victoria, and as the audience surrogate, we experience the world of the Jellicle cats with her, which is unique for this film. I also really enjoyed the performances of Ian McKellen as Gus the Theater Cat, Idris Elba as Macavity, and Judi Dench as Old Deuteronomy. James Corden and Rebel Wilson were okay as Bustopher Jones and Jennyanydots, but their shtick did start to grow stale after a while as the movie went on. Taylor Swift's performance as Bombalurina was certainly a highlight, and many have stated that she was the best part of the movie. Unfortunately, just like the song of the same name, Jason Derulo as the Rum Tum Tugger was easily the weakest part of the movie. As much as I enjoyed the other characters, his was the one that felt a bit too distracting. But the one performance that I was amazed by was Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella. She was terrific, and definitely deserves more praise than she got from critics.
Overall, Cats is not a perfect film. It's not even a great film. However, I will concede that it is a unique type of film musical. While I feel that it would have worked better as a completely animated film, and not using motion capture to make real actors look like cats, I do applaud the effort done by Tom Hooper and his creative team. As someone who enjoyed the musical Cats, I'm glad that I saw it, and I definitely enjoyed the movie for what it was. Do I recommend seeing it in the theater? Not really. However, wait until the talk surrounding the film dies down a bit, and when it's available for digital download, or even on DVD, Blu-ray, and 4K, give it a watch. Believe me, it'll probably be a much better viewing experience at home than it is on the big screen. I'm going to give Cats a rating of 3.9/5. This is Chuck signing off. See you guys next time.
Comments
Post a Comment