The Cat ReturnsNo good deed goes unpunished. That's the ironic message at the core of The Cat Returns, a spinoff to the earlier Studio Ghibli animated film, Whisper of the Heart. In this film, a Japanese schoolgirl named Haru Yoshioka saves a cat from being hit by a truck...only for the cat to stand upright and thank her for her bravery. Shocked to learn that she can understand the cat, she is later greeted at night by The Cat King and his entourage, who informs her that she will receive a slew of gifts for saving the cat, who was the king's son, Prince Lune. But what Haru discovers is that the king has designs to marry Haru to his son, regardless as to whether she has any say in the matter.
|
|
To say that Studio Ghibli is a prolific producer of family friendly animated films is obvious, and The Cat Returns is no exception. It is a charming and very funny film. But I've always had a love/hate relationship with the celebrity-voiced English dubs, which sometimes are absurdly miscast, even if they are also sometimes right on point. This film is one of those cases where it is pretty obvious who voices some characters, and it is hit or miss at times. Reprising his role from Whisper of the Heart, fan favorite Cary Elwes--iconic as Wesley from The Princess Bride--lends his voice to the eponymous "cat", the comically named Baron Humbert von Gikkingen, or "Baron" for short. The Baron was an incidental character in Whisper of the Heart; in fact, he was just a statue in an antique shop, who that film's protagonist wrote about in a novel. It was during those scenes from her book that the Baron was given a voice (Elwes), and a predisposition toward fancy dress and gentlemanly mannerisms, which carries through into this iteration. Another nod to Whisper of the Heart comes by way of the Baron's burly comrade, an obese white cat called "Muta", obviously voiced here by actor Peter Boyle, whose sarcastic brusqueness helps define Muta. The Baron's final ally in his diminutive secret realm (which is called "The Cat Bureau") is a raven called Toto, who argues with Muta and flies the Baron around. (There's also something ironic about a companion named "Toto" who helps escort a young girl to a fantasy realm, recalling The Wizard of Oz, but I digress.) Toto's voiced by Elliott Gould, and this is where casting big name actors, I believe, starts to detract from what the purpose of an English dub should really be. Don't get me wrong, I love Gould's acting--The Long Goodbye being my favorite of his works--but he is miscast here, much like Billy Bob Thornton was as a monk in the dub of Princess Mononoke. Ultimately, the reason for the celebrity voices comes down to a trend long since established and cemented into place by Disney, who had done the dubs for much (if not all) of the English releases of Studio Ghibli's films. Sometimes it works (The Cat King voiced by Tim Curry is both expected yet always magical), and sometimes it's really forced or uninspired. Anne Hathaway's a fine actress, but honestly her voicing adds nothing to Haru that any other professional voice actor couldn't have delivered. Not bad, just not special. The incentive for these releases in English to use celebrities to voice the characters always feels like its been influenced by money first--just to entice unfamiliar viewers who recognize these names--and it feels as though it quite doesn't take the Ghibli movies seriously enough to allow them to have professional voice actors to be cast in these roles instead. Yet ultimately, this is a minor quibble, and The Cat Returns remains entertaining regardless.
While no former knowledge of Whisper of the Heart is necessary to understand The Cat Returns, I think that to really enjoy the film, it is better to have watched its predecessor. However, neither film is outwardly connected by any narrative thread, only by a few "Easter eggs" here and there. Consider how the Baron at first appears to be a statue in a window with glinting amber eyes before coming to life when the lights at sundown shine on him and the antique shop in his little German-inspired village. Haru herself is a far less complex protagonist than Shizuku from the earlier film. All that we know about her is that she's often late for school, is allergic to cattails, has some crush on some guy in her class, and that she has a friend named Hiromi; that's about it. It's more important what happens to her and the adventures she has in The Cat Kingdom, rather than exploring her as a person. In fact, it wouldn't be unreasonable to think of The Cat Returns as a part of a series of fantasy books written by Shizuku, which is a fascinating idea that unfortunately doesn't get explored more in this movie. (Both films were adapted from works by Aoi Hiiragi.) To further compare both films, there is a greater sense of kinetic energy to The Cat Returns, and a stripped down level of detail which gives this follow up its own kind of vivaciousness. This is established from the start with Haru sleeping through the ringing of her elephant-shaped alarm clock and racing to school. And in The Cat Kingdom, there are chases, labyrinths, towers, and a multitude of fantastical imagery to excite audiences. (For my money, The Cat Kingdom reminds me eerily of Jim Henson's Labyrinth, a comparison made stronger by Haru's motley crew of allies trying to halt her transformation.) There's something already weird about her arranged betrothal to a cat, but it's only made stranger after she comments to the Baron that she has a "little crush" on him. I guess being half-turned into a cat left some lingering after effects on her. There's also a subplot about when Haru was a little girl where she fed some fish crackers to a dirty white kitten and the gentle white cat in the Cat Kingdom named Yuki--who is obviously the same cat--trying to help her avoid The Cat King's insidious scheme, but this feels more like filler compared to the main course that is Haru's fantastic voyage through this feline wonderland. And while Whisper of the Heart explored deeper human themes of growing up, identity, and finding one's place in the world, The Cat Returns contents itself with jolly, light-hearted adventure and comedy instead. But imagine if this movie had been one of Shizuku's novels; suddenly it resonates with those themes because for those familiar with the earlier film, we can look at The Cat Returns and feel a sense of joy that young Shizuku is still doing what she loves best: entertaining us all yet again with her playful stories of the Baron.
Recommended for: Fans of a fun and colorful animated adventure in a fantasy realm...and especially for fans of talking cats. The Cat Returns may not reach for complexity--I think it actively avoids it, to be honest--yet it snuggles comfortably (like a cat might) into its domain of simple and humorous animated warmth and comedy, with kids and felines running around just being outrageous.
While no former knowledge of Whisper of the Heart is necessary to understand The Cat Returns, I think that to really enjoy the film, it is better to have watched its predecessor. However, neither film is outwardly connected by any narrative thread, only by a few "Easter eggs" here and there. Consider how the Baron at first appears to be a statue in a window with glinting amber eyes before coming to life when the lights at sundown shine on him and the antique shop in his little German-inspired village. Haru herself is a far less complex protagonist than Shizuku from the earlier film. All that we know about her is that she's often late for school, is allergic to cattails, has some crush on some guy in her class, and that she has a friend named Hiromi; that's about it. It's more important what happens to her and the adventures she has in The Cat Kingdom, rather than exploring her as a person. In fact, it wouldn't be unreasonable to think of The Cat Returns as a part of a series of fantasy books written by Shizuku, which is a fascinating idea that unfortunately doesn't get explored more in this movie. (Both films were adapted from works by Aoi Hiiragi.) To further compare both films, there is a greater sense of kinetic energy to The Cat Returns, and a stripped down level of detail which gives this follow up its own kind of vivaciousness. This is established from the start with Haru sleeping through the ringing of her elephant-shaped alarm clock and racing to school. And in The Cat Kingdom, there are chases, labyrinths, towers, and a multitude of fantastical imagery to excite audiences. (For my money, The Cat Kingdom reminds me eerily of Jim Henson's Labyrinth, a comparison made stronger by Haru's motley crew of allies trying to halt her transformation.) There's something already weird about her arranged betrothal to a cat, but it's only made stranger after she comments to the Baron that she has a "little crush" on him. I guess being half-turned into a cat left some lingering after effects on her. There's also a subplot about when Haru was a little girl where she fed some fish crackers to a dirty white kitten and the gentle white cat in the Cat Kingdom named Yuki--who is obviously the same cat--trying to help her avoid The Cat King's insidious scheme, but this feels more like filler compared to the main course that is Haru's fantastic voyage through this feline wonderland. And while Whisper of the Heart explored deeper human themes of growing up, identity, and finding one's place in the world, The Cat Returns contents itself with jolly, light-hearted adventure and comedy instead. But imagine if this movie had been one of Shizuku's novels; suddenly it resonates with those themes because for those familiar with the earlier film, we can look at The Cat Returns and feel a sense of joy that young Shizuku is still doing what she loves best: entertaining us all yet again with her playful stories of the Baron.
Recommended for: Fans of a fun and colorful animated adventure in a fantasy realm...and especially for fans of talking cats. The Cat Returns may not reach for complexity--I think it actively avoids it, to be honest--yet it snuggles comfortably (like a cat might) into its domain of simple and humorous animated warmth and comedy, with kids and felines running around just being outrageous.