Puss in Boots: The Last Wish didn't need to be such an amazing film. We have seen it countless times over the last fifteen or so years that animated children's movies, especially ones from established franchises, need not go above and beyond the common denominator and can still double or triple their budget in gross ticket sales. A rather generic film with a few catchy tunes and marketable characters can be churned out a few times a year and the theater revenue plus toys, CDs and children's birthday parties makes it more than worth the hundred million plus investment that modern big studio animation films cost these days. Puss in Boots is different, however, and proves that art is still alive, even in the sixth installment in a franchise, and the sequel to a spin-off.
The animation style is simply breathtaking. The head of the production, Bob Persichetti clearly took a lot from his work on Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). With an impressive mix of traditional 3D animation with the messy, colorful comic book style that we saw in Spider-Verse, the film is captivating, beautiful and deep. The world feels alive in all ways. It is not stagnant or sterile as too many modern animation films seem to be these days. The background move and splash and change, and the background characters feel real, not just props placed behind the action to make the frames feel fuller.
The first time the animation really jumps out at you is in the very first fight scene between Puss and the mountain giant. Without putting on any special glasses, the images jump out of the screen and into your face. It feels about as 3D as anything traditionally marketed as 3D, but without the gimmicks. Everything moves with a grace and fluidity that can make you forget you are watching a movie about talking cats and magic wielding story-book characters. Immersive is a word that is used generously in film, but it truly applies here.
As for the writing, the dialogue is witty, but not too over the top, and the story does just enough to work as a scaffolding to allow for a visual masterpiece. In some ways, the story works better without being too heavy-handed. It is a simple hero's journey, with a comedic side-kick, an over-the-top villain without any relatable motivation, and a love interest who starts out hating the hero but grows to love him. It's everything that you'd expect. Anything too melodramatic would probably come off as insincere when coming from the lovable goofball that is Puss in Boots, and any convoluted story with twists and turns would simply take away from the marvelous visual spectacle. Instead, a rather simple but effective story here doesn't do much to wow us, but does the job. If the visuals are the brilliant, beautiful white stallion, the story is the ox pulling the cart.
Although Jack Horner serves as the true main antagonist, the character that garnered the most reaction is surely the Wolf. It is hard to capture exactly the feeling of awe I felt every time that character appeared on the screen. I felt giddy with excitement and actually gasped and squealed whenever he appeared. The only thing that comes to mind when I try to think of what made me feel that way was being a kid in the early 2000s watching WWE and hearing the gong of the Undertaker's theme music as the lights turned out in the stadium. You knew you were about to witness something simultaneously horrifying and yet so incredibly cool that you couldn't look away and had to cheer like your life depended on it. The Wolf is, without a doubt, one of the most impressive villains ever in an animated movie, and dare I say it, in any movie ever.
There is an art to making a film that appeals to all audiences. The film needs to lack gore, heavy horror, swearing and complex themes that would confuse children, but it simultaneously needs to be witty, sophisticated and engaging enough to hold the attention of adults. The Last Wish does that masterfully. You don't need to be dragged by your kids to the theater to see this one, it stands on its own as a masterpiece of cinema.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is a perfect encapsulation of a visual feast. It has everything you could want, and it executes each colorful dish with the expert touch of a Michelin star chef. It goes above and beyond its contemporaries, and ascends into another stratosphere of excellence, where it sits among the pantheon of great films, not just of animation. If there has ever been a better sixth film in a series, I am not aware of it. Truly a master class, and on that everyone should have the pleasure of enjoying.
The animation style is simply breathtaking. The head of the production, Bob Persichetti clearly took a lot from his work on Spiderman: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). With an impressive mix of traditional 3D animation with the messy, colorful comic book style that we saw in Spider-Verse, the film is captivating, beautiful and deep. The world feels alive in all ways. It is not stagnant or sterile as too many modern animation films seem to be these days. The background move and splash and change, and the background characters feel real, not just props placed behind the action to make the frames feel fuller.
The first time the animation really jumps out at you is in the very first fight scene between Puss and the mountain giant. Without putting on any special glasses, the images jump out of the screen and into your face. It feels about as 3D as anything traditionally marketed as 3D, but without the gimmicks. Everything moves with a grace and fluidity that can make you forget you are watching a movie about talking cats and magic wielding story-book characters. Immersive is a word that is used generously in film, but it truly applies here.
As for the writing, the dialogue is witty, but not too over the top, and the story does just enough to work as a scaffolding to allow for a visual masterpiece. In some ways, the story works better without being too heavy-handed. It is a simple hero's journey, with a comedic side-kick, an over-the-top villain without any relatable motivation, and a love interest who starts out hating the hero but grows to love him. It's everything that you'd expect. Anything too melodramatic would probably come off as insincere when coming from the lovable goofball that is Puss in Boots, and any convoluted story with twists and turns would simply take away from the marvelous visual spectacle. Instead, a rather simple but effective story here doesn't do much to wow us, but does the job. If the visuals are the brilliant, beautiful white stallion, the story is the ox pulling the cart.
Although Jack Horner serves as the true main antagonist, the character that garnered the most reaction is surely the Wolf. It is hard to capture exactly the feeling of awe I felt every time that character appeared on the screen. I felt giddy with excitement and actually gasped and squealed whenever he appeared. The only thing that comes to mind when I try to think of what made me feel that way was being a kid in the early 2000s watching WWE and hearing the gong of the Undertaker's theme music as the lights turned out in the stadium. You knew you were about to witness something simultaneously horrifying and yet so incredibly cool that you couldn't look away and had to cheer like your life depended on it. The Wolf is, without a doubt, one of the most impressive villains ever in an animated movie, and dare I say it, in any movie ever.
There is an art to making a film that appeals to all audiences. The film needs to lack gore, heavy horror, swearing and complex themes that would confuse children, but it simultaneously needs to be witty, sophisticated and engaging enough to hold the attention of adults. The Last Wish does that masterfully. You don't need to be dragged by your kids to the theater to see this one, it stands on its own as a masterpiece of cinema.
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is a perfect encapsulation of a visual feast. It has everything you could want, and it executes each colorful dish with the expert touch of a Michelin star chef. It goes above and beyond its contemporaries, and ascends into another stratosphere of excellence, where it sits among the pantheon of great films, not just of animation. If there has ever been a better sixth film in a series, I am not aware of it. Truly a master class, and on that everyone should have the pleasure of enjoying.
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