Cats Don't Dance (1997)

Truly Dreadful Film

Really Surprised!

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

In 1997, Warner Bros. and Ted Turner released an animated musical feature called Cats Don't Dance, which was intended as a tribute to Hollywood musicals from the 1930s. With direction from Mark Dindal (who would go on to make The Emperor's New Groove) and some choreography taught by the legend himself, Gene Kelly, this seemed like a sure fire hit....that is if it really were. While the film was decently well received by critics, it wasn't marketed very well and sadly flopped at the box office. Luckily, it has garnished a cult following over the years, and after seeing it myself, I can more than ever see why.Set in Hollywood in the late 1930s, the film centers around the optimistic and talented cat Danny who wants to make it into showbiz. The only issue, he's a cat and all other animals are only treated as second rate props behind human actors, including the nasty Darla Dimple. Upon getting into trouble with Ms. Dimple, Danny decides to bring all the animals together to make it big in the movies. Yeah, right off the bat, the plot is rather predictable and it's not so different from the usual underdog story we normally see in some animated movies. That being said, the film makes up for the weak plot with some highly entertaining scenes and jokes, fast paced animation, likable characters, and a true passion for Hollywood.In terms of the characters, Danny is the highly ambitious albeit naive protagonist who wishes to be a star, even if he has to fight hard to get his dream, which is something many people still go through today so he is a little sympathetic. Sawyer is the disillusioned albeit beautiful white cat who neglects Danny's hopes at first, but soon supports him and the other animals to become big as well. Also, can I just say that Danny and Sawyer are absolutely adorable? I love cats as it is, but they are so charming and delightful to watch....anyway, the rest are rather one dimensional, but are still humorous in their own right, like the giddy Tillie, the bad tempered curmudgeon Cranston, the superstitious T.W., and the chubby albeit charming Pudge.And then there's Darla Dimple, who is absolutely hilarious from her voice to her design. As she is a parody of Shirley Temple, she may seem like an adorable animal loving angel, but she's really an egotistical monster who will do whatever it takes to sabotage the animals just so she can be the big shot. In addition, her butler Max just cracks me up almost every time, mainly from how huge and deadpan he is. Speaking of Darla's prejudice of animals, the most interesting thing about the story itself is how, as stated before, the animals are viewed. Many of the animals themselves have dreams to be big in the theater, but they're sadly looked down upon by the humans who top them. If not for the fact that they were animals, this film probably could have been a social commentary on how African Americans were mistreated in showbiz until the 1960s....damn, this film is smart.As for the animation, in accordance to the film's upbeat and whimsical tone, the general style is reminiscent to the Looney Tunes and cartoons by Tex Avery. The characters are designed from the ground up to be cartoony, and their fast paced squash & stretch movements are perfectly timed. Not to mention, given how Gene Kelly did some choreography for the animators, the dance moves are superb, really bringing out a lot of jive and soul from each animal. The way the movie recreates Hollywood is solid enough, but the dance movements bring out that extra flavor of fun for the audience. It's also cool how the film utilizes a perfectly contrasted color scheme to set the tone: saturated when optimistic and happy and neutralized when sad and hopeless.Now I will admit, the musical numbers done by Randy Newman are rather hit or miss. Some like I Do Believe, Danny's Arrival Song and Tell Me Lies do come at their given times and are well directed and choreographed, but they don't leave enough impact to be memorable enough to sing along to. That being said, others like Animal Jam, Big and Loud, and especially Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now are highly entertaining, catchy and worth getting off your seat and just dancing to. The last one mentioned is a special highlight, not just because of the shenanigans Darla Dimple gets herself into, but also by the jazzy and upbeat tone that stands as a true finale highlight, complete with solid colors, lyrics, and dances. So yeah, the songs are either average or very good, but the good ones stick out more.I don't know how this film would have gone had it been marketed properly, but I do know that it would have been somewhat of a classic. Cats Don't Dance is a highly entertaining and fun feature that stands as an enjoyable tribute and rendition to musicals from Hollywood's golden era. Even if the plot is fairly standard and most of the characters aren't particularly grand, the wacky fast paced animation, lovable main protagonists and antagonists, catchy songs, and comedic tone make it an enjoyable feature worth your time. If you're a fan of Hollywood movies from the 30s and 40s, musicals, animated features with talking animals, or even cartoony animation, then definitely seek this one out for the whole family. Give this film as much love and support as it needs, and make it big and loud (wink wink).

Nothing's more of a nostalgic movie for me than Cats Don't Dance, the energetic animated musical of Hollywood, passion, and the pursuit of dreams that is the most criminally underrated movie I have ever seen in my life.We are introduced to Danny, a cat full of ambition and dreams of making it AS A STAR! He arrives in Hollywood and quickly meets the other wonderful cast of animals: Tilly Hippo, Cranston Goat, T.W Turtle, later Woolly Mammoth, and another cat simply named Sawyer; who is not too pleased with Danny's dream-chasing, singing and dancing attitude. Shortly after the introduction to the others, he lands a spot on the latest movie "Little Ark Angel" starring "America's Sweetheart, Lover of Children and Animals" Darla Dimple: who's pretty much a cross between Shirley Temple, Baby-Doll from the animated Batman, and a Disney villain. While filming the movie, Danny makes himself noticed much to the displeasure of Darla who shows her true colors as a spoiled little munchkin who again is as heinously evil as some of Disneys most evil villains. Which results in the calling of the gargantuan servant of Darla known as Max, which results in Max teaching Danny a lesson that I'm not gonna lie is actually pretty funny. After that happens, we find out why no one liked his little number and why Sawyer is so despondent toward Danny. We find out that Hollywood, for no clear reason, wants talented human actors and not talented animals. And the other characters we've met have talent that was wrongfully overlooked, Sawyer being both the most promising and seemingly the most broken of the group. But Danny, still wanting to follow his dream, tries to convince the others to do the same. The result: the rest of the movie.If I took out the nostalgia, I would love Cats Don't Dance all the same. I love how fun it is, I love how sincere it is, but mostly I love how passionate and driven it is. Its not a flawless movie; some of the singing voices sound a bit odd when compared to the talking voices. Danny isn't THAT well developed but not enough that I think he brought the film down. But aside from a few nitpicks I truly do love it.The music is done by Randy Newman. And while I don't "love" Randy Newman, this is really good. The songs are both catchy and fit the moods appropriately. The orchestral work is impressive as well, fitting the 1930s Hollywood setting perfectly. The animation is fantastic too; offering a familiar Warner Bros. animation feel.Honestly, I love this movie. I love everything about it. It's great, fun to watch, memorable and very underrated. I love the characters, the music, the animation, the drama; but mostly the passion. Its serious nostalgia for me, and people should definitely watch it.

Cat's Don't Dance may not be what most movie buffs would call a classic cartoon. It's not made by a big name company but it is a good movie nonetheless.Danny is a cat who wants to make it big in Hollywood. He leaves his town of Kokomo, Indiana to head for big dreams. Once he gets to Hollywood he makes his debut in a film that mostly belongs to the cute but really evil Darla Dimple. Danny tests her patience by not saying his line but rather singing it. She is not happy and reminds him that he needs to know his place in the film as an animal.Danny is determined to make a name for himself and his friends Sawyer, Tilly, Cranston, Pudge and a few others. Sawyer a female cat tries to persuade him out of trying to have dreams because he is only an animal and they are treated differently and aren't given the bigger roles in films. After awhile he gets all his friends and the animals in Hollywood to realize that they are worth it. Darla doesn't like what she sees and decides that she is going to try and sabotage the animals from starring in any future films. She tells Danny that he needs to put on a show and make it big and loud. Danny however doesn't realize that it is a scam. Darla ruins their show and Danny and all the other animals get kicked out of the studios.Danny decides to head back home but after he is on a bus and sees Pudge being pushed around he comes up with a plan that helps his friends and the other animals to make it back into the filming industry. He makes it big for himself and wins back his support from his friends and ends up winning Sawyer's affection. Darla ends up being defeated and you see her having to put up movie posters at the very end of the credits. Cat's Don't Dance may not be big on special effects but it doesn't have to be. It sells itself with a great story and anybody who watches it probably won't be let down.

This film does what few animated musicals attempt but fail to accomplish. The energy and feeling of an old silver screen musical. Gene Kelly would be proud. The animation is quite the throwback to the Chuck Jones era of cartoons. The city is wonderfully drawn and given a slight art deco feel. The voice acting is spot on for all of the characters and the singing talent is some of the best. Randy Newman does a wonderful job of scoring this film. His musical arrangements are upbeat and fun when need be and pull at your heart's strings at the right time.It's quite sad that this film was brushed under the carpet by Warner Bros. The lack of popularity, besides not being a Disney movie, could also be due to the fact that the story deals with a subject that not many kids are familiar with, Racism. But the older audience will really appreciate this movie on a whole different level.Cats Don't Dance was a film that was destined to fail but at the same time left to be one of the best animations of our time.