Movie Review: "Puss In Boots"

Puss In Boots
Directed by Chris Miller
DreamWorks Animation

Black leather boots, gloves, belt, feathered hat and cape define a hero returning to the big screen. It is not Zorro. It is his feline equivalent Puss in Boots, voiced by Antonio Banderas, who also played Zorro.

“Puss in Boots,” the new 3D spin-off starring the well-loved cat-swordsman from the “Shrek” movie series, is a pleasant surprise that is enjoyable both for fans familiar with the “Shrek” franchise and those new to the fairy-tale world in which the suave feline resides.

In the film, which takes place before the fighting feline first meets Shrek and Donkey, Puss teams up with Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek) and Humpty Alexander Dumpty (Zach Galifianakis) to steal fabled magic beans from fearsome outlaws Jack and Jill (Billy Bob Thornton and Amy Sedaris).

For Puss and Humpty, the trek is a chance at repairing a friendship that was torn apart years ago after a failed bank robbery left Humpty broken on the famous wall from his own nursery rhyme. Kitty becomes Puss’ love interest after an extended dance battle at an underground cat club called The Glitter Box.

Over the course of a remarkably well-conceived adventure, the trio engage in various daring plans and escapes. But in addition to the high-flying adventure, “Puss In Boots” offers some legitimate emotional complexity.

The internally conflicted Humpty may just be the most emotionally complex character that Galifianakis has ever played and is the most interesting character in the movie. The hills and valleys of Humpty and Puss’ friendship are very interesting to watch even though they are at times hindered by massive emotional changes, which occur in an unrealistically short time.

Puss is the same suave renegade from the “Shrek” movies on the road to redemption but manages to avoid becoming a parody of himself. Yes, there are a couple of cartwheel jumps, a few trademark soundbites and of course two or three appearances of the hilarious and adorable kitty eyes from the “Shrek” films. One instance is accompanied by some Jedi-esque mind control and is one of the funniest moments of the movie.

The film is also aided by a wonderful soundtrack written by Henry Jackman, which also features some work by Rodrigo Y Gabriela. The music is rich and immersive and keeps pace with the rest of the story so well that viewers will barely notice it’s there ““ a sign of a really good movie soundtrack.

In addition, the visual details of “Puss in Boots” are impressive and the 3D adds even more of a wow factor. Every inch of Puss’ orange fur is rendered in painstaking detail, and Humpty’s one-piece “golden egg” costume looks remarkably real ““ and uncomfortable.

All in all, “Puss in Boots” is a surprisingly earnest film which returns to a land already made famous by the “Shrek” films while managing to thread the needle between shamelessly comedic and overly serious. Though it may at times seem cramped with deep emotions, fans of all ages have a great new animated film to look forward to.