A Cat in Paris (2012)

I'll cut to the chase. "A Cat of Paris" was Oscar-nominated in one of the worst years in recent memories for the category of Best Animated Feature. Considering that the mediocre (at best) film "Rango" won and films like "Puss 'n Boots" and "Kung Fu Panda 2" were also nominated, I think I can rest my case. "A Cat of Paris" is really no better and is a film I could have skipped.The movie is told using a very simple looking animation style and looks a bit like another nominee that year, "Chico and Rita". The drawings appear a bit crude and the film has a very non-Hollywood look. Some might like it--I just thought it looked less than Oscar- worthy. Now it it NOT because I expect all animated films to look like Disney, Pixar or Dreamworks films--but I would have expected for with an Oscar nominee.The story is about a cat who spends its days living with a mute little girl. However, at night when she sleeps, it slips out and hangs with a thief with a heart of gold (a bad cliché, I admit). Later, when the child is caught up with a vicious group of gangsters, the thief and cat come to her rescue.I found myself only moderately interested in the film. It's not bad but it wasn't particularly inspired. I think had it NOT been nominated, I actually would have enjoyed it more, as my expectations were awfully high but the film couldn't match them. Additionally, I was a bit surprised how nasty and scary the gangsters were, as it seems a bit too much for younger viewers--which is unusual for a cartoon.

The curse of our modern times is that everything seems to reference something else...very few films are truly original any more. That being said, A Cat In Paris is nicely done and a pleasant way to pass about one hour with your kids (realistically engaging for ages 6 to 10). Certainly, it will do you all some good to see old-fashioned animation once in a while in our computer-generated world.Plot: Girl gets kidnapped by crime boss who wants to use her to steal something valuable. Some animal friends set out to rescue her, leading to some spectacular chase scenes and heartwarming moments. Along the way, a few more animal friends help them..will they manage to save the girl? Will the criminals be brought to justice? Grownup's view: Once I realized where I'd seen this story before, everything fell into place; change the two mice to one cat and his cat burglar friend, and A Cat In Paris is basically The Rescuers with a few minor differences in plot elements and a major location change. But what a change! I'll take a wild chase or two among the midnight rooftops of Paris over the Bayou any day. Those "Hunchback of Notre Dame" moments were definitely the best sequences of this film.Visual: The really original thing about A Cat In Paris was the animation style, which is...well okay, it's somewhat a homage to the art of Pablo Picasso. It's a bold choice, and since I can't recall the last animated film that paid tribute to Picasso, I'm calling this "original". The movements of the characters do seem uniquely sinuous here and there, and it is an especially fitting way to animate cats and cat burglars.Cynic's angle: Honestly though, the critical acclaim and the awards for ACIP baffle me. Are we so starved for something different from the last decade of wisecracking, slickly-dressed "kids" films, that we pounce on anything that doesn't smack of Disney and proclaim it great? (only to find that indeed, it was much like Disney's old formula anyway..)Yeah, I feel that way myself all too often.Conclusion: A the end of the movie, we had all enjoyed it, but not enough to watch it again. If I'd bought this at current retail I'd have been a little annoyed because it was so short..recommended for an on-demand viewing.

I really like the hand-drawn animation with great attention to detail. I also very much enjoyed the musical score by Serge Besset. All the performances were good (if a little odd in places… more on that later) so honourable mentions go to the voice talents of; Marcia Gay Harden as Jeanne, JB Blanc as Victor Costa, Anjelica Huston as Claudine and Matthew Modine as Lucas.I guess the filmmakers were trying to please everyone by making the accents of the characters quite international. Of course the bad guy has an English accent, with one of his henchmen being German. There's an old lady with a very American accent; to be honest, it's all a bit confusing! Even so, I did find it entertaining with nods to Hitchcock (amongst others), this one managed to do much more right than wrong. It's funny (in parts) too, there's one recurring gag with a barking dog that had me in stitches! Over all, it's one I don't mind giving my seal of approval to.SteelMonster's verdict: RECOMMENDED.My Score 6.5/10IMDb Score: 6.8/10 (based on 2,310 votes at the time of going to press).MetaScore: 63/100: (Based on 19 critic reviews provided by Metacritic.com at the time of going to press).Rotten Tomatoes 'Tomatometer' Score: 82/100 (based on 55 reviews counted at the time of going to press).Rotten Tomatoes 'Audience' Score: 72/100 'Liked It' (based on 3,299 user ratings counted at the time of going to press).You can find an expanded version of this review on my blog: Thoughts of a SteelMonster.

Thing that these little, European, animated movies always have going for them is the fact that they are unique to look at. They have a visual style and atmosphere of its own, that is being quite different from any of the animated movies, coming from the big studios. And this is probably the only thing that this movie still has going for it really.Sorry to say but this movie really isn't much special. Story-wise it's all a bit too familiar and it doesn't has enough excitement or originality to offer. This feels like a typical animated movie, for kids to watch early on a Saturday or Sunday morning. So it's still good and enjoyable enough all but just nothing special really. It's not a movie that will stick to your mind, for a very long time.Visually it's a pleasant movie to look at but again, it's nothing that special really. The animation is actually quite simplistic, which prevents the movie from ever doing anything groundbreaking or impressive to look at. The movie does still have a couple of stylish and artistic moments in it but unfortunately the most impressive thing to look at are still its end credits.I'm not even all that sure about it if this is a movie all children will enjoy. There are some comical moments in it but the story itself is lacking some real excitement and isn't always that interesting to follow and to keep your interest, let alone that of young children. But luckily it's only an hour short movie, so it also never starts to become a boring or one, or anything like that.Good enough but really nothing Oscar worthy.6/10 http://bobafett1138.blogspot.com/