A Cat in Paris Reviews

Made up of equal parts of the colored pencil warmth of a children’s storybook and European noir-ish intrigue of To Catch a Thief, A Cat in Paris is a charming mixed bag. The combination of flavors never settles into anything coherent, but it’s consistently lovely to gaze upon, cozy and artisanal in equal measures almost in spite of the sharp turn into danger and never-ending chases that it descends into during the second half.

 

This burning style is all used it up by the time A Cat in Paris tries to wrestle up some escalating threats. The story concerns a mute girl, her police chief mother out for revenge on the gangster who killed her husband, her cat that sneaks away at night to aid a burglar, and a gangster looking to perform a heist that will tie all of these various plot strands together. The threat of violence never feels realistic, partially out of the animation style that looks a cross between the characters out of a Red Bull ad and a Starbucks promotion. It’s unique looking and consistently captures your attention, but it alternately undercuts any threats of violence. How can we believe anything bad will happen to our heroes if everything looks so twee?  

 

There’s a lot of plot to work through in so short a running time, but A Cat in Paris manages it all effectively. Doesn’t mean it handles all of it well, with the ending a particular letdown as the burglar turns out to be a good guy and is never punished for his crimes. In fact, that last frame could make a case for the burglar and widowed police chief mother having formed a new family unit in the time since the story’s end. That is an odd turn of events seemingly at odds with the narrative around it, then the big reveal of the spy in the mute girl’s world for the gangster is obvious due to the limited amount of characters we’ve met. There’s so shock or awe there, but a shoulder shrug and a sense of “well, obviously, it couldn’t be anyone else.” Like the film around it, this revelation and the succession of chase sequences and daring thrills are vaguely satisfying. Come for the visuals and slick score, and be glad that it’s brevity masks a lot of its shortcomings.

A delightful animated adventure that felt long, more appropriate for a short. I appreciate small production houses continuing to make alternative animated films so we aren't only getting Dreamworks/Disney options.

Cat lovers who wonder where their beloved pet wanders off to at night will be surprised and delighted by "A Cat in Paris," a highly enjoyable, however brief, 2-D animated film. The decidedly strange animation is admittedly a little off-putting at first, but grows on the viewer with it's bright merry colors and distinct characters.

Young Parisian Zoe hasn't talked since the death of her father, a detective, by mad criminal Victor Costa (voiced by JB Blanc in the English-dubbed version.) With her distracted mother Jeanne (Marcia Gay Harden,) who is also a detective, fighting to hunt down Zoe's father's killer, Zoe is often left in the company of her cat, Dino, who by night is the accomplice to a jewel thief (Steve Blum,) a big-hearted rogue with a passion for danger.

I really liked how this movie dealt with adult themes while still remaining accessible to children. My nine-year-old sister, a Junior Francophile-in-the-making, laughed and bounced merrily to Dino's perilous adventures. The characters were fairly intriguing for a movie that clocks at barely an hour (although the jewel thief seemed underdeveloped,) the villain Costa was evil without being too scary.

Costa's idiot sidekicks were a little stereotypical, and I didn't like the treatment of the dog character- it seemed a little cruel to me (but hey, I'll take a dog over a cat any day.) The animation was definitely a plus to me- as I said, I was uneasy with it for the first five-or-so minutes but I started to really enjoy it after that.

Zoe is a strong and unsentimental girl heroine, while still being within the boundaries of reality. I liked the character of her mother too- instead of simply making her into a 'cruddy parent' who 'doesn't care,' the film made her her into a fierce woman dedicated to finding her husband's killer at any cost- until she realizes how much it may cost her.

I don't think this movie is up to par with 'the best of the best' (i.e. "Up" or Hayao Miyazaki,) but it's certainly better than anything Dreamworks has put out lately. There's scarcely a dull moment as the Zoe and her mother cross paths with the jewel thief and try to stop Costa from committing his most dastardly heist yet. "A Cat in Paris" is a smart, brightly colored, entertaining excursion into mystery and intrigue.