This does not appear to be one of the most widely recognized animated films of the 90's, but I did see it once on video during that decade. I guess that would have been shortly after the movie came into stores. It definitely wasn't up there with certain other animated films I saw in my childhood, but I think I found it fairly entertaining. After that, I didn't see "Cats Don't Dance" again until this year, I think just a few weeks ago. It seemed to be well-liked among those who have seen it, so I wasn't expecting a lacklustre effort. However, I didn't like it much during what was my first viewing in a long time. A few weeks later, I've already given it another try. I think it did improve with this viewing, but a lot of it still didn't really impress me.
Danny is an ambitious cat who leaves his hometown of Kokomo, Indiana to pursue a career in Hollywood. Very soon after arriving at his destination, he gets a role in a film with Darla Dimple, a child star who is known as "America's Sweetheart, Lover of Children and Animals." He is very excited about his role, until he learns that all he gets to say is "meow" and he doesn't get to dance and sing. When Danny tries to spice up his role, he soon sees Ms. Dimple's true colours and how misleading her on screen persona really is! She is actually a horribly spoiled, selfish, mean-spirited brat with a giant valet named Max, who makes sure she always gets her way! It turns out that animals only get to be extras in Hollywood, so Danny begins to work with other animals to try and change this and show Tinseltown their true talent, but Ms. Dimple knows this could threaten her career if they succeed, so she is determined to foil their plan!
When the film begins, we soon see that the animation is nicely colourful and pleasing to the eye, but for at least a while, the movie is a little too fast-paced, making it less effective than it could be. There are some fairly funny parts early on, such as Danny accidentally slamming Sawyer's (a cat secretary in Hollywood who becomes a major part of the story) tail in a door, and the look she gives him, but at this point, I had trouble really getting into the film. It isn't long before Darla Dimple, the antagonist, comes into the story. This character is clearly supposed to be funny, but she didn't amuse me very much. I did not care for her loudness, faces, etc. After a while, the film improves. It eventually didn't seem quite as fast to me and the story got more intriguing, though Ms. Dimple continues to be hardly bearable in the scenes she appears in. The animal characters are generally likable, and viewers can easily find themselves rooting for them. The movie also has an interesting premise and some funny moments, even if there aren't as many good laughs as there are supposed to be.
There are times when I'm not 100% sure about my rating for a movie, and this is one of those cases. I most definitely can't say I absolutely LOVE this movie like many others do, but feel I could be giving it a seven out of ten instead of a six. In fact, without the antics of the Darla Dimple character, I might not have any reason to give "Cats Don't Dance" a rating any lower than seven. It seems most people who have seen this 1997 animated feature like it more than I do, but I can still understand its appeal, as it certainly does have its charm. I wouldn't complain if it were to ever gain more recognition. The pace around the beginning, the antagonist, the film's songs which are not exactly bad but not the most memorable numbers for an animated musical, and maybe occasionally some other problems (minor ones) make the movie lose points, but there's also a lot to like. While this film can't match a number of other full-length animations made in the same decade, you could still easily find that it's good family fun.
Danny is an ambitious cat who leaves his hometown of Kokomo, Indiana to pursue a career in Hollywood. Very soon after arriving at his destination, he gets a role in a film with Darla Dimple, a child star who is known as "America's Sweetheart, Lover of Children and Animals." He is very excited about his role, until he learns that all he gets to say is "meow" and he doesn't get to dance and sing. When Danny tries to spice up his role, he soon sees Ms. Dimple's true colours and how misleading her on screen persona really is! She is actually a horribly spoiled, selfish, mean-spirited brat with a giant valet named Max, who makes sure she always gets her way! It turns out that animals only get to be extras in Hollywood, so Danny begins to work with other animals to try and change this and show Tinseltown their true talent, but Ms. Dimple knows this could threaten her career if they succeed, so she is determined to foil their plan!
When the film begins, we soon see that the animation is nicely colourful and pleasing to the eye, but for at least a while, the movie is a little too fast-paced, making it less effective than it could be. There are some fairly funny parts early on, such as Danny accidentally slamming Sawyer's (a cat secretary in Hollywood who becomes a major part of the story) tail in a door, and the look she gives him, but at this point, I had trouble really getting into the film. It isn't long before Darla Dimple, the antagonist, comes into the story. This character is clearly supposed to be funny, but she didn't amuse me very much. I did not care for her loudness, faces, etc. After a while, the film improves. It eventually didn't seem quite as fast to me and the story got more intriguing, though Ms. Dimple continues to be hardly bearable in the scenes she appears in. The animal characters are generally likable, and viewers can easily find themselves rooting for them. The movie also has an interesting premise and some funny moments, even if there aren't as many good laughs as there are supposed to be.
There are times when I'm not 100% sure about my rating for a movie, and this is one of those cases. I most definitely can't say I absolutely LOVE this movie like many others do, but feel I could be giving it a seven out of ten instead of a six. In fact, without the antics of the Darla Dimple character, I might not have any reason to give "Cats Don't Dance" a rating any lower than seven. It seems most people who have seen this 1997 animated feature like it more than I do, but I can still understand its appeal, as it certainly does have its charm. I wouldn't complain if it were to ever gain more recognition. The pace around the beginning, the antagonist, the film's songs which are not exactly bad but not the most memorable numbers for an animated musical, and maybe occasionally some other problems (minor ones) make the movie lose points, but there's also a lot to like. While this film can't match a number of other full-length animations made in the same decade, you could still easily find that it's good family fun.