Trying on Some Boots

I recently watched Puss in Boots, the spinoff film from the Shrek franchise featuring the suave outlaw cat introduced in Shrek 2. And while it was by no means a brilliant movie, I did find it more enjoyable.

Puss in Boots tells a simple story with predictable plot developments, but it does so with a good amount of wit and fun. The writers of the film put their efforts more into the jokes than the story itself, it seems, but those efforts do pay off with several good laughs. Most of the best ones are "cat behavior" jokes that juxtapose well with the swashbuckling hero; if you're a cat person, you are going to laugh. Repeatedly. It's that simple.

The voice cast is fairly solid. Antonio Banderas returns as Puss in Boots. The reason the character was spun off in the first place is that he was pretty much the best thing about the sequel Shrek films. Sometimes, a secondary character like that works best in small doses and doesn't transition well to being the lead. Not so here. The Banderas swagger blends wonderfully with some inspired animation to create a very entertaining protagonist.

The rest of the film is filled with all-new characters. Salma Hayek plays Kitty Softpaws, a pickpocket (should I say cat burglar?) and potential love interest. She's serving a similar function here as Cameron Diaz does in the Shrek movies... which is to say that I think the filmmakers are just trading on a voice backed by a name. I don't think Hayek is especially good or bad, but I do think the animation does more of the heavy lifting in making her character interesting.

Zach Galifianakis is Humpty Dumpty, and old friend who has an important history with Puss in Boots. Ironically, even though animation is a medium that often calls for acting extremes, his work here is actually more subtle than that of most of his movies. Two murderous outlaws, Jack and Jill, are voiced by Amy Sedaris and Billy Bob Thornton, who tear into their villainy with extreme relish. The fact that all three of these performers seem to be having so much fun definitely adds to the overall sense of fun about the film.

I'd actually say that Puss in Boots outshines any of the Shrek films since the original. It's probably not one to go out of your way to watch, but I suspect you'd enjoy it if you did. I give it a B-.