By Michelle Henry
Elm Staff Writer
“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” packs nine lives worth of action, adventure and strong storytelling into an hour and 42 minutes of screen time, with the energy of Antonio Banderas’s rich and lively voice performance as Puss.
The film was released on Dec. 21, 2022 to praise from critics and audiences alike, consistently sitting in the top five of the domestic box office since its release and rivaling “Avatar: The Way of the Water.”
The film is abundant in humor, packed with moments of laughter accessible to a broad age range. Adults will not be disappointed with the film’s wealth of well-written characters or its snappy, witty dialogue, and children are sure to be thrilled with the film’s goofier moments. However, as its PG rating suggests, the movie does contain rude humor, violence, and blood, which may frighten younger audience members.
“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” takes viewers on an emotional, action-filled journey as Puss, having fenced his way through eight of his lives, leads the audience to his final dream — the wishing star, the heavenly body he hopes will restore his past lives.
As Puss heads off into the Black Forest to reclaim his lives, he runs into familiar faces in this storybook world, including The Three Bears, Goldilocks, and The Big Bad Wolf, among others. Additionally, Salma Hayek reprises her role from the 2011 “Shrek” prequel, “Puss in Boots,” as Kitty Softpaws, who is now Puss’ nemesis. During his journey, Puss also meets Perrito, played by Harvey Guillen, a talkative canine with an optimistic streak, who acts as a foil to Puss’ cutting humor.
While fighting off foes, Puss, Softpaws, and Perrito work alongside one another, creating an alternating flow of kinship and dismissal that strengthens their bond while creating humorous moments of suspense.
The bond between the main trio is a highlight of the film, but the story is at its best when Puss finds himself relegated to the cat foster care. As he sits forlornly among hundreds of other felines under the cat lady’s watch, Puss expresses anxiety and depression, which is handled empathetically and with humor that lightens the mood without invalidating his emotions. The scene is handled with an impressive ease, proving that children’s films can tackle serious topics without looking down on the intelligence of children.
Additionally, there is a visual richness to the animation of “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” that elevates it.
In one scene, director Joel Crawford heightens the audience’s emotions through deep color saturation and attention to detail, as Puss attends his own funeral and tosses a single red rose onto a casket below ground. Graphic design lovers, animation geeks and everyday filmgoers will be appreciative of the film’s look, which diverges from the typical animation style of the Shrek franchise.
Between the accomplished voice performances, the beautiful, color-saturated animation, the action-packed storyline, and hilarious dialogue, audiences will be hard pressed to leave “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” wanting anything more other than for Puss to get his wish and spend another nine lives entertaining on screen.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Photo caption: Puss in Boots first appeared as a franchised character in 2004’s “Shrek 2.” Since then, the cunning feline has had two movies of his own, as well as a television show.