Cats Don't Dance

"Cats Don't Dance" is an excellent animated film, and if you asked my three kids, they'd tell you it's one of their favorite movies ever! "Cats Don't Dance" can be enjoyed whether you're age 4 (close to my youngest child) or age 40 (close to me). The movie uses bright and crisp colors which make you pay attention---and you'll have to! "Cats" moves at a rapid pace. I'm always apprehensive when I hear about animated musicals because the songs usually stink. However, I think the songs and musical sequences in "Cats" are better than those in most Disney hit movies. [Darla Dimples's performance singing "Big And Loud" is an animated classic.] My kids sing "Cats" songs just for fun. They've seen the movie (by their own request) almost 20 times. By the way, I knew Natalie Cole was a good singer, but who knew that Scott Bakula was too? "Cats Don't Dance" has great dialogue (Danny and Sawyer at her job, the same two cats arguing while a disaster ensues, and Danny meeting with Darla Dimple at her home are among my favorite scenes. If characters are going to achieve a good and noble goal in a movie, there MUST be worthy foils trying to stop them. "Cats Don't Dance" has two of the best villians ever in Darla Dimple and her behemoth of a butler Max. Darla takes being two-faced to a whole new level. (Notice at least twice in the movie when the red bow on her head looks more like two horns) Max is so huge that he actually blocks out light! His laugh is chillingly amazing and Max the the BEST line of dialogue in the movie: "How does the kitty cat gooooooooooooooo? [Danny: 'Meow?'] "Very goooooooooood." Every character in this movie (most of whom are animals) are drawn exaggeratedly and that fits perfectly for the theme and tone of this movie. "Cats" is a funny, wild ride for children and adults. If you like animation and/or musicals and/or clever comedy, you'll love "Cats Don't Dance". It's a shame this great movie isn't more popular. Hopefully good word-of-mouth (and word-of-internet) will change that.

Nothing's more of a nostalgic movie for me than Cats Don't Dance, the energetic animated musical of Hollywood, passion, and the pursuit of dreams that is the most criminally underrated movie I have ever seen in my life.

We are introduced to Danny, a cat full of ambition and dreams of making it AS A STAR! He arrives in Hollywood and quickly meets the other wonderful cast of animals: Tilly Hippo, Cranston Goat, T.W Turtle, later Woolly Mammoth, and another cat simply named Sawyer; who is not too pleased with Danny's dream-chasing, singing and dancing attitude.

Shortly after the introduction to the others, he lands a spot on the latest movie "Little Ark Angel" starring "America's Sweetheart, Lover of Children and Animals" Darla Dimple: who's pretty much a cross between Shirley Temple, Baby-Doll from the animated Batman, and a Disney villain. While filming the movie, Danny makes himself noticed much to the displeasure of Darla who shows her true colors as a spoiled little munchkin who again is as heinously evil as some of Disneys most evil villains. Which results in the calling of the gargantuan servant of Darla known as Max, which results in Max teaching Danny a lesson that I'm not gonna lie is actually pretty funny.

After that happens, we find out why no one liked his little number and why Sawyer is so despondent toward Danny. We find out that Hollywood, for no clear reason, wants talented human actors and not talented animals. And the other characters we've met have talent that was wrongfully overlooked, Sawyer being both the most promising and seemingly the most broken of the group. But Danny, still wanting to follow his dream, tries to convince the others to do the same. The result: the rest of the movie.

If I took out the nostalgia, I would love Cats Don't Dance all the same. I love how fun it is, I love how sincere it is, but mostly I love how passionate and driven it is. Its not a flawless movie; some of the singing voices sound a bit odd when compared to the talking voices. Danny isn't THAT well developed but not enough that I think he brought the film down. But aside from a few nitpicks I truly do love it.

The music is done by Randy Newman. And while I don't "love" Randy Newman, this is really good. The songs are both catchy and fit the moods appropriately. The orchestral work is impressive as well, fitting the 1930s Hollywood setting perfectly. The animation is fantastic too; offering a familiar Warner Bros. animation feel.

Honestly, I love this movie. I love everything about it. It's great, fun to watch, memorable and very underrated. I love the characters, the music, the animation, the drama; but mostly the passion. Its serious nostalgia for me, and people should definitely watch it.

Cats don't dance is a fun entertaining cartoon for all the family and it's one of the best animated musicals I've ever seen. Scott Bakula is wonderful as Danny the talented ambitious cat who dreams of making it big in Hollywood. Along the way he meets a couple of animal buddies who are also like himself waiting for their chance to make their big break but whose stars have faded. Cats don't dance has some fantastic songs that are toe tapping good including Scott Bakula singing Danny's arrival song, the animal jam session, and Nothings gonna stop us now with incredible vocals from Natalie Cole and Scott Bakula.As I was saying Scott Bakula is great as Danny the enthusiastic cat with stars in his eyes. I think he did a brilliant job and his voice in the songs were just spectacular. This is cute,funny,uplifting and a feel good cartoon with a lot of heart and emotion. If you are looking for something with a real story that's fun and entertaining than look no further than this one it's a classic and one the kids will love.

"Cats Don't Dance" is a delightful animated feature in the style of a 1930's musical comedy. The main character, Danny (voiced by Scott Bakula), is a high-spirited cat from Kokomo, Indiana who goes to Hollywood with dreams of becoming a movie star. But there he finds limited roles available for animals. The story is a sly message about discrimination. The imagery is bright and the music is catchy. The villainess is a wonderful Darla Dimple, a Shirley Temple parody of a child star with a dark side. Together with her monstrous manservant Max, they provide many laughs. Other funny animals include Tilly the Hippo (voiced by Kathy Najimy) and T.W. the Turtle (voiced by Don Knotts). So "Cats Don't Dance" is an enjoyable movie for everyone!

I'll always be a hardcore Disney fan, but I can't help but have a real soft spot for movies which prove that dreams can come true. This movie about anthropomorphic characters (animals that are like people) is simply incredible- animation stylized, cute, and fun... with an incredible plot, great music (I bought the soundtrack), amazing voice talent (that includes singing!), and believable characters. This is a real keeper...and I'm surprised that it didn't get as much attention as it deserved. I'd reccomend it to anyone who's had a dream, or who has one... and those who just love cartoons.