00s Movie Review - The Cat Returns

Director: Hiroyuki Morita
Genre: Animation/ Family/ Drama/ Fantasy
Runtime: 75 minutes
Year: 2002
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Cary Elwes, Judy Greer, Kristen Bell, Peter Boyle, Elliot Gould, Tim Curry

Description: After helping a cat, the seventeen-year-old Haru (Anne Hathaway) finds herself involuntarily engaged to a cat Prince in a magical world where her only hope of freedom lies with a dapper cat statuette (Cary Elwes) coming to life.

Review: “The Cat Returns” is one of Studio Ghibli’s lesser known films, but it is on that the real cat lovers should not skip. And it contains a lot of magic.
Don’t you ever wonder where those cats wander off to, when to go out? Well, in “The Cat Returns” it’s a secret cat kingdom, hidden behind some narrow alleys. Studio Ghibli plays with this idea, very skillfully. Th concept was conceived by Hayao Miyazako himself, but directed by Hiroyuki Morita, who worked on several other anime and Studio Ghibli films as animator.
Haru’s life is not that different from any other teenage girl. She’s regularly late for school and has a crush on one of the classmates, who unfortunately already has a girlfriend. Haru would like her life to have a little more happiness, since everything seems to go well for others but not for her.
Everything changes after she saves a cat. The cat walks on two legs and talks to her, but of course no one believes her. As if that’s not strange enough, a cat parade appears in front of her door at night. The king of the cat kingdom has come in person to thank her for saving his son, the cat prince. The gift that the cat king has brough is also quite strange… she has to marry the prince!
“The Cat Returns” is a witty film which features The Baron, who we met in “Whisper of the Heart”. This character is the star of the film. It’s a fun, magical and adventurous story that will be perfect for the entire family. Visually is looks good and the soundtrack is atmospheric and fitting. It’s not one of Studio Ghibli’s best film, but certainly one to check out.

Rating: 3,5 / 5