 |
| A weekly series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves |
Hey, all you cool cats and kittens, it's Carole at Big Cats Rescue... oops, I meant it's Sonia at A Film A Day and this is the animal-themed week of Thursday Movie Picks. Since I am a proud owner of a gorgeous cat, and that Tiger King series really left a mark on me, my post is going to feature three films about cats.
The Aristocats (1970)
Plot: With the help of a smooth-talking tomcat, a family of Parisian felines set to inherit a fortune from their owner try to make it back home after a jealous butler kidnaps them and leaves them in the country.
I haven't seen this one in many, many years — I was probably still a kid — so I don't remember much about it. I did like it though.
Garfield (2004)
Plot: When his human master, Jon (Breckin Meyer), adopts a dog to impress veterinarian and high-school crush Liz (Jennifer Love Hewitt), Garfield (Bill Murray) feels left out and constantly tries to be the better pet. When the dog runs away, cause Garfield locked him out, he feels obliged to go rescue him.
I haven't seen this one in roughly15 years but I really loved it when I was younger. I'm sure I'd feel entirely different about it today though.
Puss in Boots (2011) - Review
Plot: Years before meeting Shrek and Donkey, Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) is a wanted fugitive with a mission, to find magic beans. But Puss isn't the only one after the beans and he crosses paths with Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek), a female feline who is helping Humpty Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis), an egg of questionable intent and Puss' old friend. Puss eventually agrees to work with them and steal the beans from the outlaw couple Jack (Billy Bob Thornton) and Jill (Amy Sedaris) but things don't go according to plan.
It's not as good as the first two Shrek films but it is a fun and entertaining animated flick that will make you fall in love even more for Banderas's adorable ginger cat.
I guess it's nostalgia that makes me have a softer spot for older animated films than newer ones. I enjoyed The Aristocats when I was younger, I think partially because I recognized so many of the various performers who lent their voices to it. I haven't seen it in years and while I've heard of the other two I have no desire to see either.
ReplyDeleteThough all three of mine were made in the 60's by a strange coincidence I just saw two of them within the last month without realizing this theme was upcoming. Lucky me! It made coming up with choices very easy this time out. The third Born Free I use to watch all the time on TV. It was very popular when it came out even spawning a short-lived TV spin-off.
Rascal (1969)-Near the turn of the last century in a small Wisconsin town young Sterling North (Bill Mumy) adopts a baby raccoon-Rascal and spends most of that summer trying to keep him out of trouble while his widowed traveling salesman father Willard (Steve Forrest) is away on business. Disney produced reverie based on the autobiographical book by North.
Born Free (1966)-In a Kenyan game preserve wardens Joy and George Adamson (played by real life marrieds British performers Virginia McKenna and Bill Travers) discover three young cubs whose mother has been shot by poachers. They care for the three at the reserve until the two larger cubs are sent to a zoo, but both develop a special kinship with Elsa, the runt of the litter. Being of a gentle disposition they at first keep her as a pet but when the prospect of George’s reassignment and the threat of having to send Elsa to a zoo arises the couple decide that since she was born free they have to reintegrate her into the wild. Based on a true story.
Black Zoo (1963)-At the private zoo “Conrad’s Animal Kingdom” warped owner Michael Conrad (Michael Gough) is up to no good. He rules over a cult of animal worshippers whose fealty is only to the four footed beasts and when anyone poses a threat to their society Conrad has trained the animals to dispatch them in gruesome ways.
It's definitely nostalgia. Movies like Mulan, The Little Mermaid, The Emperor's New Groove and Anastasia, I could watch them all the time.
DeleteI haven’t seen any of these but I want to see the Aristocats and Puss N’ Boots.
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised you haven't see those two. The Aristocats is such a classic and Puss in Boots is adorable.
DeleteI've only seen Aristocats but it's been years. I can't remember what the plot of the movie was lol
ReplyDeleteNeither could I. I copied it from IMDb 😅
DeleteI love that you feature cats in your picks, Sophia. Puss in Boots is hilarious!
ReplyDeleteBtw, TIGER KING is one crazy doc series, so freaky that they're actually doing a scripted version of it, I couldn't help but making a list of my own dream cast as to who I want to play Joe Exotic & co, ahah!
Thanks! As much as I love it, Sophia is not my name though.
DeleteOh my goodness!! Sorry I mistyped your name... I knew it's SONIA, not Sophia. Pardon my mistake.
DeleteNo worries ;)
DeleteI love Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots. I used to have 3 cats.
ReplyDeleteCats are just the best.
DeleteOh man! I remembered I used to watch the Aristocats all the time when I was little! And I really enjoyed the Puss in Boots movie! Great list!
ReplyDeleteThank you! I too watched The Aristocats a lot.
DeleteSo many went with the animation theme this week. That makes sense, everyone needs bit brightness and animations I think works well for that imo.
ReplyDeleteYeah, especially during the situation we are living.
DeleteGreat picks. If I were picking an animated movie with animals, I'd likely pick one with a funny wee rat named Remy though technically that is not an animal, LOL.
ReplyDeleteThanks! And who said that Remy is not an animal?! He is one of the most adorable ones!
DeleteLove Puss in Boots.
ReplyDeleteI think I sort of avoided the Garfield movie. I like the comic strip and have even watch the cartoons and the cat in the Garfield movie just looked super cartoonish especially since they used a real dog for the dog.
I hated that they used a real dog for the dog to be honest. If you are making a cartoonish cat just do the same with the dog.
Delete