PUSS IN BOOTS

title: PUSS IN BOOTS
year: 2011
voices: Antonio Banderas, Zack Galifianakis, Salma Hayek
rating: **

Well let it be said, for the first ten minutes, this Puss had potential. Making like a Clint Eastwood mixed with Pepe La Pew, the suave feline from SHREK has his own movie – but not for long. Joining the ride is an equally intrepid girl kitty and one of the worst animated characters in DreamWorks history: Humpy Dumpty, voiced by Zach Galifianakis, whose back story with our furry feline is as boring as it is pointless. The plot has our eclectic trio trying to steal magic beans. Some cool action scenes straight from a Western flick moves things along till the seeds are planted. Thus a beanstalk reaches to the skies and the story, now involving a baby goose and its gigantic mother, gets way too convoluted for a character deserving of a less bizarre and more earthy tale. Catisms like licking milk rapidly and chasing light make for humorous intervals, but are quickly ruined by overlong dance numbers seeming more like DVD extras. But what’s important is your kids will enjoy it, just as long as you don’t explain some of the innuendos thrown in to make the film’s writers feel they’re doing more than… entertaining children.