Review - Matt Mungle

   

They fight like cats and dogs. That expression has been around for quite sometime and I have to wonder where the animosity comes from. As an avid dog lover I have to think that it is the cats fault. Their holier than thou attitude causes our loyal, faithful canines to want to take action. But in the new family friendly action adventure, Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore it is one grudge wielding feline that is out for retribution! This film was surprisingly well rounded and offered as much for the adults as for the smaller movie goers.

In this fur flying adventure Kitty Galore (Bette Midler) has a plan for world domination and unless the spy dog Butch (Nick Nolte) and his new renegade partner Diggs (James Marsden) can intervene it looks like the end of dogs and humans everywhere. It gets worse when they have to put their animosity aside and team up with Catherine (Christina Applegate) who just happens to be a cat herself. Following pigeon trails and infiltrating undercover cat houses this team has just a few days before Kitty’s plan goes into action.

This film is all live action with the talent voicing the animal characters. This ability to seamlessly combine the two worlds has opened doors for some wonderful live action family films and allowed the tykes something other than just animation tales. Plus it creates movies that are just as appealing to adults. Although this movie is 100% safe for any age viewer I almost feel like the adults will get more from it. The writing is witty and full of references to all the best spy and action thrillers of the past. I found it hard to keep up with all the quotes from my favorite characters from films like Lethal Weapon and others. Even the opening credits could be straight from a James Bond classic.

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore is rated PG for animal action and humor. The kids will love the continuous action and animal antics. The story line is simple enough for youngsters to follow yet crafted well enough to keep adults engaged. There are moments in this one where I was literally laughing out loud at the creative parodies and twists on well known movie characters. I give it 5 out of 5 shots of cat nip. For its genre there is no fault to be found. Just a well done film that the entire family can get something from. That is a rarity these days and should be acknowledged. So says Matt Mungle.