|
|
BookPrices.net - Catnapped: The Movie (Dub)
|
List Price: $19.98
Our Price: $4.99
Your Save: $ 14.99 ( 75% )
Availability:
Manufacturer: Geneon [Pioneer]
Starring: William Bassett, Louise Chamis, Dorothy Elias-Fahn, Michael Forest, Sandy Fox
Directed By: Takashi Nakamura
|
Average Customer Rating:  
|
|
Audience Rating: G (General Audience)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 0013023110632
Format: Animated
Label: Geneon [Pioneer]
Manufacturer: Geneon [Pioneer]
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Geneon [Pioneer]
Release Date: 2000-03-07
Running Time: 77
Studio: Geneon [Pioneer]
Theatrical Release Date: 1995
|
|
|
|
|
|
Spotlight customer reviews:
|
Customer Rating:
Summary: A family-friendly film... but it doesn't mean that it's good
Comment: Catnapped! was created, written, and directed by Takashi Nakamura. His other notable work was serving as the animation director on Akira.
Catnapped! takes place in a location called Banipal Witt, and its populated by anthropomorphic cats. It is ruled by Buburina, a cruel witch princess who has the ability to turn any living thing into a balloon by simply touching it. She kidnaps a dog named Papadoll, who she intends to use to take over the world. The dog's owners, two kids named Toriyasu and Meeko, must try to turn him back to normal and return him to their world.
The film clocks in at 75 minutes, and I have to give credit to Nakamura for utilizing this short time to the fullest to tell his story. While my children enjoyed watching this film, I felt as if I was watching someone's drug trip. But I do have to also give credit to the film'sanimation; it fits in with the fantasy feel Nakamura appeared to strive for.
The DVD was rather disappointing. There was very little in the way of special features, and the movie automatically starts instead of going to the main meny first. But it appears that this pressing of the DVD was originally released in 1998, which was during the first year or so of DVDs (which would have been before much effort was put into special features).
While Catnapped! is a film that can be appreciated by children, it utlimately leaves the adults watching with them scratching their heads and wondering what they just watched for the past 75 minutes.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Many other anime titles are far better for kids
Comment: Catnapped is a really bizarre combination of anime styles. On one hand you have Takashi Nakamura, famous for his violent Akira bloodfest. On the other hand, you have a cat-world movie clearly aimed at 5 year olds.
You begin with a sister and brother. Toriyasu, the boy, is about 10 and is a snide bully. He kicks his dog, hits his sister and is generally unpleasant. Meeko, the sister, talks constantly in a very high pitched voice tinged with a whine. In very short order it turns out that the dog has been kidnapped off to a cat world by an "evil princess". The cat people come to take Tori and sis along in order to set things to rights.
Now, before I continue, let me make it clear that I'm a big fan of little kid anime. I think it can be a wonderful way to draw youngsters into the wide world of anime. It can teach a great moral lesson while entertaining as well. Kids can even learn Japanese!
So that being said, I was pretty disappointed with Catnapped. The brother and sister both begin as unappealing characters. The whole dog-kicking upset me quite a bit. It's one thing to say "the boy gets grumpy". It's quite another to say "the boy physically abuses his pet" as a normal course of events. The evil princess begins as being completely spoiled by her king-and-queen parents - the point that she puts another young girl in (literally) a life and death situation, causing the child to fall nearly to her death. The parents allowed this?? If anyone was to be punished, it was the PARENTS for being such incredibly neglectful adults that in any state I know of the DSS would have swooped in.
The princess gets cursed for her parents' faults and everyone she touches inflates like a balloon. It sets up a whole "Yikes this is awful because now I'm big" series of commentary. There are also several comments by boys and girls making disparaging comments about being heavy. The stuck-on-herself princess is "Pretty but Nasty" which is quite the stereotype
Ah, but there's more. A young boy that was studying magic "went too far" because of his love for the princess, stole a magic glove, and also became completely cruel and evil as a result. He is dedicated to the princess and wants to join her on her quest.
Here's the quest. With the stolen and now large-and-obedient-to-evil dog, they gobble up a bunch of the cat townsfolk. The princess inflates them all into balloons. She stuffs them into a giant mouse-shaped blimp. This cat world is all sitting on top of a sleeping cat. Just to give some background here, the Hindu religion believes the world sit on an elephant, which sits on a turtle. This sort of visual symbol has been used in many sci-fi stories.
In any case, the princess' thought here is to send the mouse to wake up the cat so it "shakes the world" causing pain to everyone. Then she'll send in the dog to ... put the cat to sleep. This is her plan. It makes no sense at all. Dogs don't put cats to sleep. Also if her plan is just to put the cat to sleep again, what is her aim? To destroy her own world? She could already do that with the dog. To make the populace fear her? They already do, because of her balloon abilities.
Kid films usually don't involve a lot of violence; they involve lesson learning and problem solving. However, Catnapped takes great delight in delivering pain. The princess not only inflates people into balloons - but she pops them so that their skin explodes and they die. I mentioned the forcing-child-to-fall-to-near death. I mentioned the boy-repeatedly-viciously-kicking-pet.
I kept hoping for a Beauty and the Beast ending. If anything, the princess was the most "innocent" here. She was mis-raised by her parents. She was cursed pretty nastily. She had a boy still quite in love with her. She actually loved the dog greatly, talking sweetly to him, snuggling with him, taking tender care of him. Considering the dog's "real" owner kicked him frequently, I was voting for the dog to stay with the princess and that she'd get over the curse!
But nooooo. First we have a "final countdown to doom" which is completely meaningless - the time scale keeps changing randomly. You have a super-potent sleeping pill that would put the dog to sleep for a solid week - but when the princess swallows it, she barely nods off 2 or 3 times. The final lesson seems to be that a person who is abused should stay with that abuser even if a loving person comes along, because it's better to be loyal. I shook my head in disbelief.
The graphics are very simple - but not in a high-quality-done-clearly sort of way. They are simple in the not-much-effort way. Yes, the design was done well. The home "normal" graphics are low key and very comfortable seeming, with quiet streets and a clean (too clean?) bedroom. The "cat world" graphics are a kid's imaginative dream of a fantasy land - full of carnival toys, day-night designs seemingly stolen from a baby's mobile, and random round objects thrown in everywhere for visual interest. While the design was quite interesting, the animation just isn't well done. Many scenes seem to use cookie cutter characters replicated many times in the room, or loops of video.
It's a shame to say "they're only kids so they can make do with low quality graphics, storyline and moral results." That stance really bothers me a lot. Sure kids would overlook the really bizarre humans-with-cat-makeup style of the cat people, or the other issues. But given the many other anime greats that DO suit a kid's audience and provide them with a fantastic wealth of imagery, storyline and resolution, why settle for a lower quality item? It's even more upsetting to me that Takashi Nakamura could have done far better with this storyline and animation. Why did he feel adults were worthy of what he put into Akira - but that kids would be OK with only a half hearted effort?
The movie "ends" with the kids waking up to race off to school. The princess and her boyfriend are still as cursed as before, and all that has really happened is that the two kids have removed the dog from her control. The boy promises to be better to the dog now - but will he really be as truly loving and snuggly as the princess had proven herself to be? He certainly doesn't mind bashing his sister on the head as they head out to school. The cat people show up in hot pursuit, because there's a new problem, and that's how the movie ends. It can't even just end - it has to make sure there is a sequel.
I really really tried to love this movie. I am always eager to add to the list of children's anime I can recommend to parents. This movie just isn't it. It is a pale shadow of the many other incredibly high quality children's anime titles that DO exist out there. If you've got kids, make sure you've already gotten the other titles before you work your way down to this one.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Amazing, so happy to have finally found it again!
Comment: I saw this at an Anime festival in 1996 and never knew the name. It has been stuck in my head and I've asked every single friend from Japan if they knew what it was and if they knew the name. Everyone seemed to recognize the theme, but no one knew what it was called in English. The bright amazing colors, fun yet psychadelic story, lovely yet simple animation style. It obviously impressed me enough to have looked for it the past 9 years, so I would highly recommend this to any Anime fan who appreciates more than just the traditional graphic style of most Anime films. And it's definitely great for kids!
Customer Rating:
Summary: what is the difference?
Comment: I have the regular DVD version of Catnapped. My kids (especially my 7 yr old daughter) love to watch it. You can't go wrong purchasing this for adult or child viewing...it's really that good.
I just need to know what the Geneon version offers that is not on the regular version? Is there a commentary track? What exactly is different?
Customer Rating:
Summary: Crazy & Original
Comment: After neglecting his dog Papadoll, Toriyasu loses him and doesn't know where to find him. Will Papadoll even want to come back to Toriyasu, after he neglected him before? Catnapped (1995) is zany and crazy; the backgrounds are very colorful, but strange. The scenery is gorgeous and it really reminds me of Little Nemo. Both boys and girls would like it. I got interested in it when I found out it was directed by the same director as Akira, Takashi Nakamura.What I like most is the really good-looking character animations; they're wonderful. They are beautiful anthropomorphs. They're cute, but not babyish. The music is good. The animated frame rate is as good as you can get for an anime, it never seems stiff. As a university student, the overall tone is a little childish, but it is really hilarious and entertaining, so that makes up for it. Monster Papadoll is hysterical; he's cute but freaky. It's light-hearted and there is action, but not violence. If you are looking for a movie that's dark or scary, this will not do. The DVD is bilingual and it includes character information. By the way, it's normal for kid shows in Japan to have swears, so note there are some swears in the subtitled format. Catnapped is an unexpected anime and it's very creative and original. I'm glad I own it.
|
|
|
Editorial Reviews:
|
Two young children must travel to the fanciful cat-world of "Banipal Witt" in order to save their dog and the feline denizens from the evil sorceress, Buburina, an evil cat whose very touch can turn any living thing into a balloon! In the tradition of "My Neighbor, Totoro". Written and directed by Takashi Nakamura, animation director of the legendary film, "Akira". Screenplay by Chiaki Konaka of "Armitage III" and "lain". A charming story of love and friendship, Catnapped! will uplift your spirits and inspire your dreams!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
