"Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" is a fun adventure in the "Shrek" universe! I gotta admit I have not seen the original film, and don't cherish the "Shrek" films as much as many do... so I went into this with mild expectations. And honestly, I had a good time; it was cute! Do I think it was as good as many other reviewers have suggested? No. But it was enjoyable, lighthearted fun that is perfect for families with kids! The voice cast was awesome, especially John Mulaney and Florence Pugh as the villains, Jack Horner and Goldilocks respectively. And of course Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots is iconic as ever!
The animation here was gorgeous too, honestly it was one of my favourite parts. I love that major studio animated movies are finally starting to take more risks with their animation style, moving away from the typical 3D CGI realism. You gotta respect "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" for starting this trend and showing that different styles can work! I loved that this had a more watercolor, storybook illustration look to it, it really worked for the story and was employed in such creative ways! I would love to see the "Shrek" movies take this on, but alas they seem to have established their own look. This movie just looked so cool, so distinct in its own style, it really felt like I was watching a story in a fairy tale world.
Now, of course I have to admit I didn't love this movie. Something about it felt off to me, I couldn't seem to see where the acclaim was coming from. Sure, it was fun, it was cute, and I enjoyed myself while watching, but I never felt like I truly connected with the film. The opening scene felt a little jumbled to me, rapidly going from a musical sequence, to comedy for kids, to an action scene and I wished it would've let me settle into the story a bit first. I get this is a movie primarily for kids, but with most animation they tend to make parts enjoyable for the parents and older audiences as well. I don't really feel that here - they tried with the themes and the deeper storyline - but it never actually worked in my eyes. Everything felt very kid-focused, which isn't a bad thing, it just meant I wasn't the core audience and so it makes sense why I wouldn't enjoy it as much. I have to say, the kids in my theatre seemed to be having a blast! I'm sure this is a great movie for families with children, it just wasn't as good as I was told it would be.
I think the movie tried to do a bit of what Pixar is known for, the whole "trying to be deep" thing. The movie involves Puss in Boots coming to terms with death, and it seemed to be somewhat shallow, it never truly dove into this aspect of the story. Instead, the storyline is very linear and somewhat dull where it is just about the characters traveling to their destination and the villains sometimes catching up and then combat ensuing. And the physical goal literally being the spiritual goal just makes the inevitable plot point of "maybe I don't need the thing I wanted all long and it's the friends I made along the way that count" seem all the more predictable. Even Puss' relationship with the side characters is unchallenging. Although he is deeply flawed, his companions never seem to care about that and forgive him all the time. The chemistry of the characters was just nowhere as endearing as in "Shrek". Still the adventure was quite fun, I just didn't think the themes clicked as it felt like they were trying to be deep in a way that is not as organic and surprising as a film like Pixar's "Up", "Finding Nemo" or even DreamWorks' "How to Train Your Dragon".
Perhaps I am being too harsh, I feel like this review is sounding more negative than anything. I really did have fun with it, and overall would give it a thumbs up, it's an enjoyable way to spend an hour and a half. The animation was really cool, the voice cast was great, and man I loved the little nods to the "Shrek" movies even if I was never a huge fan of those. If nothing else, this movie did make me really hopeful for another "Shrek" film. I do enjoy this fairy tale world and the creative animation they used to tell the story!
The animation here was gorgeous too, honestly it was one of my favourite parts. I love that major studio animated movies are finally starting to take more risks with their animation style, moving away from the typical 3D CGI realism. You gotta respect "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" for starting this trend and showing that different styles can work! I loved that this had a more watercolor, storybook illustration look to it, it really worked for the story and was employed in such creative ways! I would love to see the "Shrek" movies take this on, but alas they seem to have established their own look. This movie just looked so cool, so distinct in its own style, it really felt like I was watching a story in a fairy tale world.
Now, of course I have to admit I didn't love this movie. Something about it felt off to me, I couldn't seem to see where the acclaim was coming from. Sure, it was fun, it was cute, and I enjoyed myself while watching, but I never felt like I truly connected with the film. The opening scene felt a little jumbled to me, rapidly going from a musical sequence, to comedy for kids, to an action scene and I wished it would've let me settle into the story a bit first. I get this is a movie primarily for kids, but with most animation they tend to make parts enjoyable for the parents and older audiences as well. I don't really feel that here - they tried with the themes and the deeper storyline - but it never actually worked in my eyes. Everything felt very kid-focused, which isn't a bad thing, it just meant I wasn't the core audience and so it makes sense why I wouldn't enjoy it as much. I have to say, the kids in my theatre seemed to be having a blast! I'm sure this is a great movie for families with children, it just wasn't as good as I was told it would be.
I think the movie tried to do a bit of what Pixar is known for, the whole "trying to be deep" thing. The movie involves Puss in Boots coming to terms with death, and it seemed to be somewhat shallow, it never truly dove into this aspect of the story. Instead, the storyline is very linear and somewhat dull where it is just about the characters traveling to their destination and the villains sometimes catching up and then combat ensuing. And the physical goal literally being the spiritual goal just makes the inevitable plot point of "maybe I don't need the thing I wanted all long and it's the friends I made along the way that count" seem all the more predictable. Even Puss' relationship with the side characters is unchallenging. Although he is deeply flawed, his companions never seem to care about that and forgive him all the time. The chemistry of the characters was just nowhere as endearing as in "Shrek". Still the adventure was quite fun, I just didn't think the themes clicked as it felt like they were trying to be deep in a way that is not as organic and surprising as a film like Pixar's "Up", "Finding Nemo" or even DreamWorks' "How to Train Your Dragon".
Perhaps I am being too harsh, I feel like this review is sounding more negative than anything. I really did have fun with it, and overall would give it a thumbs up, it's an enjoyable way to spend an hour and a half. The animation was really cool, the voice cast was great, and man I loved the little nods to the "Shrek" movies even if I was never a huge fan of those. If nothing else, this movie did make me really hopeful for another "Shrek" film. I do enjoy this fairy tale world and the creative animation they used to tell the story!