Dayum, CRITICS are SPITTING FIRE over CATS: THE MOVIE

[EricJ]

9 minutes ago, CinemaInternational said:

I just went to the 5-screen theatre in town today to see Frozen II before it left town after tomorrow. Why am I bringing this up? Well, Cats was playing in the theatre right next door. I was essentially sitting only 10 feet removed from Cats.

(sigh)  You still have a local 5-screen?  😩  I miss those!

[sagebrush]

1 hour ago, CinemaInternational said:

I just went to the 5-screen theatre in town today to see Frozen II before it left town after tomorrow. Why am I bringing this up? Well, Cats was playing in the theatre right next door. I was essentially sitting only 10 feet removed from Cats. At one point, I went to use the bathroom. When I was heading toward there, I peered in through the window in the door and saw Cats, which looks odd. When I was coming back, I looked in again, trying to see inside. The dancing in the film actually looks adept, but its the special effects I think that are making it get the catcalls. Anyway, as far as I could see the theatre playing Cats didn't have anyone in it, unless they were in the far back. So, a good 25 to 30 minutes later, close to the end of Frozen, I saw two people come into the theatre, and I wondered if they had walked out on Cats, provided they were in the back of that theatre and I just didn't see them. If that was the case, wow.

On Sunday afternoon, I went to see a screening of IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE (all seats taken) and CATS was in the theater next door. About halfway through the film, I got up to stand in the entry way because of a Sciatica attack. There were about 8 people also standing there along the hand rail, with popcorn and drink in hand, watching the film. I asked one of them if they were able to buy standing room tickets, and she told me that her group left the theater showing CATS and snuck in to our theater instead. 😄 I hope they got to watch the rest of the film undisturbed.

[sewhite2000]

So, I saw Cats on Sunday. Lorna, you will you probably be very disappointed to hear I didn't find it to be some gloriously delicious trainwreck. Mostly, it was just a standard musical, and since I"ve never particularly cared for most musicals anyway, I found this to be yet another fairly boring, paint-by-number big-budget mainstream Hollywood production. I felt like the print I saw must have been the hastily rushed out edition with corrections, because I didn't see anyone with missing cat-suits or missing body parts or anything else of that nature.  i've never seen the stage show, so I don't know how similar or different it is. I know Taylor Swift co-wrote one new song with Andrew Llloyd Webber (shameless attempt an Oscarnomination, I guess, since only material new to the film version can be nominated) which is performed by the lead actress,  Francesca Hayward, during the film and then again by Swift over the closing credits. I felt that the film probably had a bit more a plot structure than the stage version, with the magical cat played by Idris Elba kidnapping all his competitors to win the big Jellicle song contest and their subsequent escape/rescue. I think the entire Broadway show takes place in one location, while the movie is on multiple "sets", such as they are. I feel like most of the sets must be CGI. I believe someone on here pointed out how out of proportion they were, and that was indeed a bit disconcerting. Like if an actual human had ever appeared on screen, he/she would have had to have been about 17' tall for the sets to make sense. My understanding is there was no spoken dialogue in the stage show, but some was written for the film version, most of it humorous (most of the spoken dialogue is by the comic actors James Corden and Rebel Wilson), some of it to move what little plot there is along a bit.

I found Hayward quite lovely in cat form, which I hope doesn't make me a furry or plushy or whatever these fetish lifestyles are that have been discussed on here. She has a lovely face and a lithe dancer body, and is very expressive of curiosity and desire in gamine-like fashion. Reminded me of a young Audrey Hepburn. I've only found one or two real-life pictures of her which don't quite live up to how good she looks in the film. Most of the other main actors are pretty well known, especially Swift of course, and they each get a showcase number, all of which I thought were hummable. "Memories" was the only song I'd ever heard of before watching the film, and Jennifer Hudson gets her big Supporting Actress-nomination bid moment twice, very similar to "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going".

[LornaHansonForbes]

11 hours ago, sewhite2000 said:

So, I saw Cats on Sunday. Lorna, you will you probably be very disappointed to hear I didn't find it to be some gloriously delicious trainwreck. Mostly, it was just a standard musical, and since I"ve never particularly cared for most musicals anyway, I found this to be yet another fairly boring, paint-by-number big-budget mainstream Hollywood production. I felt like the print I saw must have been the hastily rushed out edition with corrections, because I didn't see anyone with missing cat-suits or missing body parts or anything else of that nature.  i've never seen the stage show, so I don't know how similar or different it is. I know Taylor Swift co-wrote one new song with Andrew Llloyd Webber (shameless attempt an Oscarnomination, I guess, since only material new to the film version can be nominated) which is performed by the lead actress,  Francesca Hayward, during the film and then again by Swift over the closing credits. I felt that the film probably had a bit more a plot structure than the stage version, with the magical cat played by Idris Elba kidnapping all his competitors to win the big Jellicle song contest and their subsequent escape/rescue. I think the entire Broadway show takes place in one location, while the movie is on multiple "sets", such as they are. I feel like most of the sets must be CGI. I believe someone on here pointed out how out of proportion they were, and that was indeed a bit disconcerting. Like if an actual human had ever appeared on screen, he/she would have had to have been about 17' tall for the sets to make sense. My understanding is there was no spoken dialogue in the stage show, but some was written for the film version, most of it humorous (most of the spoken dialogue is by the comic actors James Corden and Rebel Wilson), some of it to move what little plot there is along a bit.

I found Hayward quite lovely in cat form, which I hope doesn't make me a furry or plushy or whatever these fetish lifestyles are that have been discussed on here. She has a lovely face and a lithe dancer body, and is very expressive of curiosity and desire in gamine-like fashion. Reminded me of a young Audrey Hepburn. I've only found one or two real-life pictures of her which don't quite live up to how good she looks in the film. Most of the other main actors are pretty well known, especially Swift of course, and they each get a showcase number, all of which I thought were hummable. "Memories" was the only song I'd ever heard of before watching the film, and Jennifer Hudson gets her big Supporting Actress-nomination bid moment twice, very similar to "And I'm Telling You I'm Not Going".

Oh wow man, thanks for taking one for the team (as it were.) And Thank you for the very thorough and honest review.

I’ve only seen CATS once and it was on Broadway in 1992, and to this day I still remember How utterly taken aback I was by the complete plotlessness of it- For it to of been such a long running worldwide sensation at the time I saw it, I was expecting some kind of compelling story, or at least *a* story. – And really there ain’t none.

So I personally think that a lot of the adverse reactions this is getting is due to the fact that quite a few people were totally unfamiliar with the source material, and are now wrestling with the same feelings of confusion that I had on seeing it for the first time – which is you expect something to have a story, any story at all, and CATS Is more in the spirit of the ZEIGFELD FOLLIES- in that it’s a bunch of random musical numbers thrown together in the same show, Which is not something that modern audiences are used to.

 

[Sukhov]

 

[sagebrush]

10 hours ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

So I personally think that a lot of the adverse reactions this is getting is due to the fact that quite a few people were totally unfamiliar with the source material, and are now wrestling with the same feelings of confusion that I had on seeing it for the first time – which is you expect something to have a story, any story at all, and CATS Is more in the spirit of the ZEIGFELD FOLLIES- in that it’s a bunch of random musical numbers thrown together in the same show, Which is not something that modern audiences are used to.

Yes to this! It  helps if you are also interested in the poems which are the main source of the lyrics. I've always loved "Old Possum's Book Of Practical Cats", so I was thrilled to see them put to song (and of course, the dancing is wonderful.) I've seen the play five times, and only one of my guests (my mother) said she enjoyed it enough to perhaps see it again.  I saw one performance in San Francisco in which the cast signed autographs in the lobby after the show. That was really fun to see what each cat character looked like in real life and without fur!

[CinemaInternational]

Universal canceled any FYC Promotion for Cats. In essence, they have already disowned it.

[UMO1982]

3 hours ago, CinemaInternational said:

Universal canceled any FYC Promotion for Cats. In essence, they have already disowned it.

Yup. Universal has removed all ads for and mentions of CATS in its awards PR promotions.  It's also been removed from the OSCARS streaming platform for voting members.  It'll be out of theaters by the end of the year, no doubt.

[sagebrush]

So, I saw CATS with some family on Saturday afternoon. There were about 15 people total in the theater for this showing. I didn't see anyone leave during the film.

Like seewhite2000, I didn't find it to be as bad as the reputation it has so far accumulated.  Maybe it's because I'm a huge fan of musicals both past and present and always seem to find something to like about them, which means, of course, I liked the dancing and the songs (I always have.) Yes, the attempt to string them together with a plot line seemed almost worse than the original play in which songs and dances were presented more as a revue. I think if they hadn't done this, however, it might have really been confusing to try and follow.

My disappointment was the omission of some songs I loved in the play, and the lack of singing ability from some of the actors (If anyone caught 2012's LES MISERABLES, think Russell Crowe's singing.) I like Rebel Wilson normally but really disliked her singing of "Jennyanydots, The Gumby Cat". Same goes for Ian McKellen's "Gus, The Theater Cat". James Cordon usually sings well, but he seems to sleep walk through his "Bustopfer Jones" number.

I kept hoping that one of my favorite numbers from the play, " Macavity", was not going to be Taylor Swift's big moment. About 3/4 of the way through the the film, it became obvious that this was going to be her song. She did well, but the number was shot just like it was one of her music videos. Originally a clever duet, they turned it into a solo for her with a chorus of backup cat dancers.

Jennifer Hudson slightly oversang "Memory", but she's so relatable and has such a wonderful voice. Judi Dench did admirably with her role and also had the best cat fur! 😄

Francesca Hayward was a delight in the film's central role as Victoria. She's a lovely dancer. Also very good were Laurie Davidson as Mr. Mistoffelees and Robert Fairchild as Munkustrap.  All the dancing in the film is wonderful. I wish they hadn't chosen the rapid fire editing style for the film; if you're someone who really enjoys choreography, it's hard to dissect when you are only seeing cuts, cuts, cuts...

Maybe this film will become a cult classic.

 

[UMO1982]

The stench known as CATS is now set for a $100M loss for Universal, making it one of the biggest bombs of all time. Variety ran a report this weekend stating the film did not recover over the xmas holiday as was hoped. Even adjusting for inflation, few films in history have even lost this much money.

[CinemaInternational]

Since the Universal experiment went over well, here is the "as badly reviewed or worse than Cats" club from Paramount....

[LornaHansonForbes]

FRIDAY THE 13th part III is fine, and PART VI is a genuinely good movie. 

And I remember thinking NORBITT was funny.

and STAYING ALIVE is a GLORIOUS VIEWING EXPERIENCE.

[LornaHansonForbes]

3 minutes ago, LawrenceA said:

At one time, I considered Marci X the worst studio film that I'd ever seen. It may still hold the title, but much of it has blessedly left my memory.

I Completely forgot this movie existed until I read it on this list just now.

poor Paul Rudnick, I really enjoy a lot of his writing for Premiere, but nearly all his scripts have been baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaad.

[LornaHansonForbes]

9 minutes ago, LawrenceA said:

Well, it has been a while since I saw it. I remember laughing pretty hard at “NIPPLEOPOLIS” tho.

[CinemaInternational]

This just in, the Razzie longlists have been revealed for 2019, from which the Razzie nominees will be culled...... 

Worst Film
Cats
The Fanatic
Glass
Godzilla, King of the Monsters
The Haunting of Sharon Tate
Hellboy
A Madea Family Funeral
Rambo: Last Blood
Replicas
Serenity
Zeroville

Worst Actor
Gerard Butler / Angel Has Fallen
James Franco / Zeroville
David Harbour / Hellboy (2019)
James McAvoy / Glass
Matthew McConaughey / Serenity
Keanu Reeves / Replicas
Sylvester Stallone / Rambo: Last Blood
John Travolta / The Fanatic & Trading paint

Worst Actress
Hilary Duff / The Haunting of Sharon Tate
Megan Fox / Zeroville
Anne Hathaway / The Hustle & Serenity
Francesca Hayward / Cats
Milla Jovovich / Hellboy (2019)
Demi Moore / Corporate Animals (they always go after her though. It's like some cruel running joke)
Tyler Perry (As Medea) A Madea Family Funeral
Rebel Wilson / The Hustle

Worst Supporting Actor
Kyle Chandler / Godzilla, King of the Monsters
James Corden / Cats
Charles Dance / Godzilla, King of the Monsters
Oscar Jaenada / Rambo: Last Blood
Michael Madsen / Trading Paint
Sergio Peris-Mencheta / Rambo: Last Blood
Tyler Perry / A Madea Family Funeral (as “Joe”)
Tyler Perry / A Madea Family Funeral (as "Uncle Heathrow")
Seth Rogan / Zeroville
Bruce Willis / Glass

Worst Supporting Actress
Jessica Chastain / Dark Phoenix
Cassi Davis / A Madea Family Funeral
Judi Dench / Cats
Lydia Hearst / The Haunting of Sharon Tate
Sasha Lane / Hellboy (2019)
Patrice Lovely / A Madea Family Funeral
Fenessa Pineda / Rambo: First Blood
Rebel Wilson / Cats

Worst Directing
Andrea Berloff/ The Kitchen
Michael Dougherty / Godzilla, King of the Monsters
Fred Durst / The Fanatic
Daniel Farrands / Haunting of Sharon Tate
James Franco / Zeroville
Adrian Grunberg / Rambo: Last Blood
Noah Hawley / Lucy in the Sky
Tom Hooper / Cats
Neil Marshall / Hellboy
M. Night Shyamalan / Glass

Worst Screenplay
Cats -- Screenplay by Lee Hall and Tom Hooper
Glass -- Written by M. Night Shyamalan
Godzilla, King of the Monsters --  Story and Screenplay by Max Borenstein, Michael Dougherty and Zach Shields
The Goldfinch--  Screenplay by Peter Straughan
The Haunting of Sharon Tate -- Written by Danial Farrands
Hellboy (2019) -- Screenplay by Andrew Cosby
The Kitchen -- Written by Andrea Berloff
Lucy in the Sky -- Screenplay by Brian C. Brown, Elliott DiGuiseppi & Noah Hawley
A Madea Family Funeral -- Written by Tyler Perry
Rambo: Last Blood -- Screenplay by Matthew Cirulnick and Sylvester Stallone

Worst Remake or Sequel
Angel Has Fallen
Dark Phoenix
Glass
Godzilla, King of the Monsters 
Hellboy (2019) 
A Madea Family Funeral .
Rambo: Last Blood 

Worst Couple (some of these go beyond catty and venture into just plain nasty)
Any Two Half-Feline/Half-Human Hairballs / Cats
Jason Derulo & His CGI-Neutered “Bulge” / Cats
Megan Fox & James Franco / Zeroville
Godzilla & Any Flying, Fire-Breathing, Pagoda-Stomping Monster / Godzilla, King of the Monsters
David Harbour & Milla Jovovich / Hellboy (2019
Anne Hathaway & Matthew McConaughey / Serenity
Tyler Perry & Tyler Perry (or Tyler Perry) A Madea Family Funeral
Sylvester Stallone & His Impotent Rage / Rambo: Last Blood
John Travolta & Any Screenplay He Accepts

[LornaHansonForbes]

No TAYLOR SWIFT?

[LornaHansonForbes]

Also, I know the FIELD IS RICH for the RAZZIES , but I think awards should show some discipline and stick to five slots.

[LornaHansonForbes]

WELL, TO BE FAIR, DEMI MOORE is a really bad actress. And has been, more or less, consistently.

[CinemaInternational]

Just now, LornaHansonForbes said:

No TAYLOR SWIFT?

No Ian McKellan, idris Elba,  or Jennifer Hudson either.... and I was definitely expecting Elba to show up. Swift kind of escaped because her bit was only about 8 minutes long and that it mostly stood apart from the rest of the film.

 

Just now, LornaHansonForbes said:

Also, I know the FIELD IS RICH for the RAZZIES , but I think awards should show some discipline and stick to five slots.

They are going to. Each of these will be toned down to five, these are just preliminary. But, I fully expect Cats to get into the final five on almost everything you see above since many had a field day with it. And Rebel Wilson will likely be double nommed in Leading and Sup[porting for The hustle and Cats.

[CinemaInternational]

1 minute ago, LornaHansonForbes said:

WELL, TO BE FAIR, DEMI MOORE is a really bad actress. And has been, more or less, consistently.

Mortal Thoughts, though. i was a bit mixed on that film, but she was very good in it, especially at the ending.

[CinemaInternational]

The Columbia low-Metacritc group

[CinemaInternational]

Warner Bros....

[CinemaInternational]

My my, Cats actually won an award! Except its not the type of award a film wants. A citation for being the campiest film of 2019.

[EricJ]

2 hours ago, CinemaInternational said:

This just in, the Razzie longlists have been revealed for 2019, from which the Razzie nominees will be culled...... 

Worst Couple (some of these go beyond catty and venture into just plain nasty)

Usually they save the lame traditional gag for the one movie where the actor does a dual role (yuk, yuk!), but Young & Old Will Smith in "Gemini Man" either seems to have escaped their radar, or they let Tyler Perry occupy that placeholder.

[LornaHansonForbes]

16 hours ago, CinemaInternational said:

Mortal Thoughts, though. i was a bit mixed on that film, but she was very good in it, especially at the ending.

That was one I missed. I liked Glenne Hedley tho (sp?) she died recently, I think