The Aristocats [G]

Paris, 1910 and in a beautiful manor in the ritziest part of Paris lives a rich and eccentric woman who, in her will, decides to leave her estate and all her money to her family…her family of cats. But when her greedy butler overhears her plan, he catnaps Duchess, the elegant mother, and her three kittens and abandons them in the French countryside. But thankfully, a rough-and-tumble alley cat named Thomas O’Malley discovers them and together, they set off on a long journey home.  

We’ve already covered the canine classic 101 Dalmatians, now it’s time to walk with the felines. Another Disney animated musical classic, The Aristocats is 76 minutes of elegant animals, devious villains, and swinging jazz music. Love it! 

Paris, 1910, and in a beautiful manor in the ritziest neighborhood in Paris lives a rich and eccentric woman who, in her will, decides to leave her entire estate and all her money to her family…her family of cats. Duchess and her three children Marie, Berlioz, and Toulouse are the elegant, gentle, and sophisticated Aristocats, living a lovely and luxurious life in the manor with Madame. But when Madame’s greedy butler Edgar overhears about her plan to leave her entire estate to the cats, he catnaps Duchess and the kittens and abandons them in the French countryside. Lost with no idea how to defend themselves on the harsh streets of Paris, the Aristocats cross paths with a rough-and-tumble alley cat named Thomas O’Malley. Falling in love with Duchess on first sight, O’Malley takes the family under his wing and escorts them through the rough streets on their journey home, introducing them to danger, vicious humans, and jazz music along the way. 

This movie is another one of my Disney classics. The animation is similar to that of The Jungle Book, The Sword in the Stone and 101 Dalmatians; fairly clear, but with vey dark outlines. It’s based on a solid story and the characters are very cute and memorable. 

I love watching films where animals are the central characters and it’s great to see them doing all the things that humans do. I mean, in this movie Berlioz, the little black kitten, plays the piano! What’s not to love? It’s great personification. 

Featuring the voice talents of Phil Harris, Eva Gabor, Sterling Holloway, Scatman Crothers, Dean, Clark, Liz English, and Gary Dubin, The Aristocats is a wonderfully cute and fun animated classic filled with catchy tunes, romance, damsels in distress, comedy, charming scoundrels, and drunken birds. It’s an absolute classic and I just adore it!