Cats is a 2019 musical fantasy film based on the stage musical of the same name by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which in turn was based on the poetry collection Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats (1939) by T. S. Eliot. The film is directed by Tom Hooper—in his second feature musical following Les Misérables (2012)—from a screenplay by Lee Hall and Hooper and features an ensemble cast, including James Corden, Judi Dench, Jason Derulo, Idris Elba, Jennifer Hudson, Ian McKellen, Taylor Swift, Rebel Wilson, and introduces ballerina Francesca Hayward in her first feature-length film role.[3]
Cats was theatrically released in the United States and the United Kingdom on December 20, 2019, by Universal Pictures. The film has been panned by critics who criticized its uncanny CGI effects, plot, acting, and inconsistent tone, while the visual aspects, casting, production values, soundtrack and musical performances were mostly praised.
Cast
James Corden as Bustopher Jones[4]
Judi Dench as Old Deuteronomy[5]
Jason Derulo as Rum Tum Tugger[6]
Idris Elba as Macavity[7]
Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella[8]
Ian McKellen as Gus the Theatre Cat[9]
Taylor Swift as Bombalurina[10]
Rebel Wilson as Jennyanydots[11]
Francesca Hayward as Victoria[12]
Jaih Betote as Coricopat[13]
Les Twins as Plato and Socrates[14]
Jonadette Carpio as Jemima[15]
Danny Collins as Mungojerrie
Laurie Davidson as Mr. Mistoffelees[16]
Robbie Fairchild as Munkustrap[17]
Melissa Madden Gray as Lady Griddlebone
Steven McRae as Skimbleshanks[18]
Naoimh Morgan as Rumpleteazer[19]
Daniela Norman as Demeter[20]
Bluey Robinson as Alonzo[21]
Freya Rowley as Jellylorum
Ida Saki as Electra
Zizi Strallen as Tantomile[22]
Mette Towley as Cassandra[23]
Eric Underwood as Admetus[24]
Ray Winstone as Captain Growltiger
Cory English as Maître D'
Po-Lin Tung as Admiral Genghis
Production
Development
An animated film adaptation based on the musical was initially planned by Amblimation in the 1990s, but was abandoned with the studio's closure.[25] In December 2013, Andrew Lloyd Webber, creator and composer of the musical stage production Cats, teased that Universal Pictures, which had purchased the film rights to Cats many years earlier, was putting the project into active development.[26]
In February 2016, it was reported that Tom Hooper was in negotiations to direct the film, and was considering actresses, including Suki Waterhouse, to star.[27] In May 2016, Hooper was confirmed as director.[28]
In January 2018, Hooper and Working Title began officially casting for the film, while looking into the technical aspect of whether the film would be entirely live-action or computer generated or a mix of both,[29] with Lloyd Webber announcing he would be writing a new song for the film adaptation.[30] On October 24, 2019, it was announced that the new song is titled "Beautiful Ghosts", written by Taylor Swift and Lloyd Webber.[31] The song will be sung by Francesca Hayward, followed later in a reprise by Judi Dench, with a credits version sung by Swift.[32] The version sung by Swift was released on November 15, 2019.[33]
Casting
In June 2018, there were reports Anne Hathaway was considered for a role in the film, but she passed due to scheduling conflict.[34] In July 2018, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, James Corden, and Ian McKellen joined the cast.[35] Swift had previously tested for the role of Éponine in Tom Hooper's Les Misérables but was given the part of Bombalurina without an audition.[36]
In September 2018, Laurie Davidson and Mette Towley were cast, with Steven Spielberg announced to be executive producing.[37][38] In October 2018, Idris Elba and Judi Dench joined the cast of the film.[39][40] Dench was cast in the original stage musical, but was forced to pull out due to a torn Achilles tendon; Lloyd Webber and Hooper decided to make Old Deuteronomy a woman and offered her the role.[41]
In November 2018, ballet dancers Francesca Hayward and Steven McRae as well as Rebel Wilson, Jason Derulo, and Robert Fairchild joined the cast of the film with rehearsals commencing at Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire, England.[42][43][44][45] Andy Blankenbuehler choreographed the film, after Wayne McGregor was forced to back out due to scheduling conflicts.[46] Blankenbuehler also choreographed the stage musical's 2016 Broadway revival. In December 2018, Les Twins and Eric Underwood joined the cast.[47]
Filming
Principal photography began on 12 December 2018,[47] and ended on 2 April 2019.[48]
Music
Music for the film was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber. A "highlights" edition of the soundtrack with a running time of 59 minutes was released on 20 December 2019, by Polydor Records and in the US by Republic Records.[49] The song "Beautiful Ghosts" by Taylor Swift, a single from the soundtrack album, was released on 15 November 2019.[50]
Musical numbers
"Overture" – Orchestra
"Prologue: Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats" – The Company
"The Naming of Cats" – The Company
"The Invitation to the Jellicle Ball" – Victoria, Mistoffelees, Munkustrap, Company
"Jennyanydots: The Old Gumbie Cat" – Jennyanydots, Munkustrap, Company
"The Rum Tum Tugger" – Rum Tum Tugger, Jennyanydots and Company
"Grizabella: The Glamour Cat" – Grizabella, Demeter, Cassandra, Company
"Bustopher Jones: The Cat About Town" – Bustopher, Company
"Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer" – Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Victoria, Company
"Old Deuteronomy" – Munkustrap, Old Deuteronomy, Company
"Growltiger's Last Stand" – Growltiger
"The Jellicle Ball" – The Company
"Memory" – Grizabella
"Beautiful Ghosts" - Victoria
"The Moments of Happiness" – Old Deuteronomy, Company
"Gus: The Theatre Cat" – Asparagus
"Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat" – Skimbleshanks and Company
"Macavity: The Mystery Cat" – Bombalurina, Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Company
"Mr. Mistoffelees" – Mr. Mistoffelees, Munkustrap, and Company
"Memory" – Grizabella, Victoria
"Beautiful Ghosts (Reprise)" - Victoria, Old Deuteronomy, Grizabella
"The Journey to the Heaviside Layer" – The Company
"Finale: The Ad-Dressing of Cats" – Old Deuteronomy and Company
Marketing
On 6 April 2019, Jennifer Hudson performed "Memory" at the Las Vegas CinemaCon, along with a behind-the-scenes look with the film’s cast and crew.[51] On 17 July 2019, Universal released a behind-the-scenes featurette detailing the various aspects of the film's production and featuring interviews with the cast and crew.[52] The first trailer for the film was released on 18 July 2019,[53] and received overwhelmingly negative reactions from viewers.[54] Many viewers were unsettled by the mix of CGI and live-action used to portray the cats, and cited the effects as an example of the uncanny valley.[55][56]
Release
The film premiered at Alice Tully Hall at the Lincoln Center in New York City on December 16, 2019.[57][58] It was theatrically released in the United States and United Kingdom on December 20, 2019.[59]
Reception
Box office
In the United States and Canada, Cats is scheduled to be released alongside Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and is projected to gross $15–20 million in its opening weekend.[60]
Critical response
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 19%, based on 115 reviews, with a weighted average of 3.75/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Despite its fur-midable cast, this Cats adaptation is a clawful mistake that will leave most viewers begging to be put out of their mew-sery."[61] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 34 out of 100, based on 41 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[62]
Peter Debruge of Variety called the film "one of those once-in-a-blue-moon embarrassments that mars the résumés of great actors (poor Idris Elba, already scarred enough as the villainous Macavity) and trips up the careers of promising newcomers (like ballerina Francesca Hayward, whose wide-eyed, mouth-agape Victoria displays one expression for the entire movie)," criticising the direction and effects.[63] Kyle Smith of National Review said Cats took too long to make its way to the big screen, "and today it feels like a splashy re-launch of the hottest Atari video game of 1982."[64] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter felt that the film was "hobbled by a major misjudgment in its central visual concept" lamenting its execution (such as the poor proportions of the 'cats' to their environments) and deeming the film "exhausting".[65]
In the Los Angeles Times, Justin Chang wrote that "With its grotesque design choices and busy, metronomic editing, Cats is as uneasy on the eyes as a Hollywood spectacle can be, tumbling into an uncanny valley between mangy realism and dystopian artifice."[66] Peter Bradshaw for The Guardian wrote a one-star review parodying "The Naming of Cats" that criticised the visual style and particularly the character design, while lambasting the film as a "dreadful hairball of woe".[67] Manohla Dargis of The New York Times felt that Hooper had made "a robust effort" to adapt the stage musical—which "was always going to be difficult, particularly once the decision was made to create a live-action version rather than an animated one"—and "enlisted some talented performers", but that the film version suffered from a lack of the human connection that theater involves, where performers and audience share a space, without which "all that's left are canned images of fit-looking people meowing and raising their rumps high in the air."[68]
Despite the negative critical reception, Swift's brief appearance received praise, with critics mostly agreeing that her appearance as Bombalurina was one of the film's few highlights.[69] Pete Hammond of Deadline also praised Swift, writing that she "acquits herself nicely as Bombalurina and her signature 'Macavity' number, as well as 'Beautiful Ghosts', written for the end credits by Swift and Lloyd Webber."[70] In addition, critic Guy Lodge called Swift "the best thing in the film" and "the one performer who completely hits their marks and pulls off the lone successful number",[71] while critic Rebecca Lewis labelled Swift's performance as "one of the few genuinely good parts of the film."[72] Patrick Ryan, writing for USA Today, stated that Swift "makes the most of her brief screen time, bringing her unabating charisma to the flirtatious feline" and further expanded that "if there's one thing that's disappointing about Swift's performance, it's that there isn't more of it"
Cats was theatrically released in the United States and the United Kingdom on December 20, 2019, by Universal Pictures. The film has been panned by critics who criticized its uncanny CGI effects, plot, acting, and inconsistent tone, while the visual aspects, casting, production values, soundtrack and musical performances were mostly praised.
Cast
James Corden as Bustopher Jones[4]
Judi Dench as Old Deuteronomy[5]
Jason Derulo as Rum Tum Tugger[6]
Idris Elba as Macavity[7]
Jennifer Hudson as Grizabella[8]
Ian McKellen as Gus the Theatre Cat[9]
Taylor Swift as Bombalurina[10]
Rebel Wilson as Jennyanydots[11]
Francesca Hayward as Victoria[12]
Jaih Betote as Coricopat[13]
Les Twins as Plato and Socrates[14]
Jonadette Carpio as Jemima[15]
Danny Collins as Mungojerrie
Laurie Davidson as Mr. Mistoffelees[16]
Robbie Fairchild as Munkustrap[17]
Melissa Madden Gray as Lady Griddlebone
Steven McRae as Skimbleshanks[18]
Naoimh Morgan as Rumpleteazer[19]
Daniela Norman as Demeter[20]
Bluey Robinson as Alonzo[21]
Freya Rowley as Jellylorum
Ida Saki as Electra
Zizi Strallen as Tantomile[22]
Mette Towley as Cassandra[23]
Eric Underwood as Admetus[24]
Ray Winstone as Captain Growltiger
Cory English as Maître D'
Po-Lin Tung as Admiral Genghis
Production
Development
An animated film adaptation based on the musical was initially planned by Amblimation in the 1990s, but was abandoned with the studio's closure.[25] In December 2013, Andrew Lloyd Webber, creator and composer of the musical stage production Cats, teased that Universal Pictures, which had purchased the film rights to Cats many years earlier, was putting the project into active development.[26]
In February 2016, it was reported that Tom Hooper was in negotiations to direct the film, and was considering actresses, including Suki Waterhouse, to star.[27] In May 2016, Hooper was confirmed as director.[28]
In January 2018, Hooper and Working Title began officially casting for the film, while looking into the technical aspect of whether the film would be entirely live-action or computer generated or a mix of both,[29] with Lloyd Webber announcing he would be writing a new song for the film adaptation.[30] On October 24, 2019, it was announced that the new song is titled "Beautiful Ghosts", written by Taylor Swift and Lloyd Webber.[31] The song will be sung by Francesca Hayward, followed later in a reprise by Judi Dench, with a credits version sung by Swift.[32] The version sung by Swift was released on November 15, 2019.[33]
Casting
In June 2018, there were reports Anne Hathaway was considered for a role in the film, but she passed due to scheduling conflict.[34] In July 2018, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, James Corden, and Ian McKellen joined the cast.[35] Swift had previously tested for the role of Éponine in Tom Hooper's Les Misérables but was given the part of Bombalurina without an audition.[36]
In September 2018, Laurie Davidson and Mette Towley were cast, with Steven Spielberg announced to be executive producing.[37][38] In October 2018, Idris Elba and Judi Dench joined the cast of the film.[39][40] Dench was cast in the original stage musical, but was forced to pull out due to a torn Achilles tendon; Lloyd Webber and Hooper decided to make Old Deuteronomy a woman and offered her the role.[41]
In November 2018, ballet dancers Francesca Hayward and Steven McRae as well as Rebel Wilson, Jason Derulo, and Robert Fairchild joined the cast of the film with rehearsals commencing at Leavesden Studios in Hertfordshire, England.[42][43][44][45] Andy Blankenbuehler choreographed the film, after Wayne McGregor was forced to back out due to scheduling conflicts.[46] Blankenbuehler also choreographed the stage musical's 2016 Broadway revival. In December 2018, Les Twins and Eric Underwood joined the cast.[47]
Filming
Principal photography began on 12 December 2018,[47] and ended on 2 April 2019.[48]
Music
Music for the film was composed by Andrew Lloyd Webber. A "highlights" edition of the soundtrack with a running time of 59 minutes was released on 20 December 2019, by Polydor Records and in the US by Republic Records.[49] The song "Beautiful Ghosts" by Taylor Swift, a single from the soundtrack album, was released on 15 November 2019.[50]
Musical numbers
"Overture" – Orchestra
"Prologue: Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats" – The Company
"The Naming of Cats" – The Company
"The Invitation to the Jellicle Ball" – Victoria, Mistoffelees, Munkustrap, Company
"Jennyanydots: The Old Gumbie Cat" – Jennyanydots, Munkustrap, Company
"The Rum Tum Tugger" – Rum Tum Tugger, Jennyanydots and Company
"Grizabella: The Glamour Cat" – Grizabella, Demeter, Cassandra, Company
"Bustopher Jones: The Cat About Town" – Bustopher, Company
"Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer" – Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Victoria, Company
"Old Deuteronomy" – Munkustrap, Old Deuteronomy, Company
"Growltiger's Last Stand" – Growltiger
"The Jellicle Ball" – The Company
"Memory" – Grizabella
"Beautiful Ghosts" - Victoria
"The Moments of Happiness" – Old Deuteronomy, Company
"Gus: The Theatre Cat" – Asparagus
"Skimbleshanks: The Railway Cat" – Skimbleshanks and Company
"Macavity: The Mystery Cat" – Bombalurina, Mungojerrie, Rumpleteazer, Company
"Mr. Mistoffelees" – Mr. Mistoffelees, Munkustrap, and Company
"Memory" – Grizabella, Victoria
"Beautiful Ghosts (Reprise)" - Victoria, Old Deuteronomy, Grizabella
"The Journey to the Heaviside Layer" – The Company
"Finale: The Ad-Dressing of Cats" – Old Deuteronomy and Company
Marketing
On 6 April 2019, Jennifer Hudson performed "Memory" at the Las Vegas CinemaCon, along with a behind-the-scenes look with the film’s cast and crew.[51] On 17 July 2019, Universal released a behind-the-scenes featurette detailing the various aspects of the film's production and featuring interviews with the cast and crew.[52] The first trailer for the film was released on 18 July 2019,[53] and received overwhelmingly negative reactions from viewers.[54] Many viewers were unsettled by the mix of CGI and live-action used to portray the cats, and cited the effects as an example of the uncanny valley.[55][56]
Release
The film premiered at Alice Tully Hall at the Lincoln Center in New York City on December 16, 2019.[57][58] It was theatrically released in the United States and United Kingdom on December 20, 2019.[59]
Reception
Box office
In the United States and Canada, Cats is scheduled to be released alongside Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, and is projected to gross $15–20 million in its opening weekend.[60]
Critical response
On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 19%, based on 115 reviews, with a weighted average of 3.75/10. The site's critical consensus reads: "Despite its fur-midable cast, this Cats adaptation is a clawful mistake that will leave most viewers begging to be put out of their mew-sery."[61] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 34 out of 100, based on 41 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".[62]
Peter Debruge of Variety called the film "one of those once-in-a-blue-moon embarrassments that mars the résumés of great actors (poor Idris Elba, already scarred enough as the villainous Macavity) and trips up the careers of promising newcomers (like ballerina Francesca Hayward, whose wide-eyed, mouth-agape Victoria displays one expression for the entire movie)," criticising the direction and effects.[63] Kyle Smith of National Review said Cats took too long to make its way to the big screen, "and today it feels like a splashy re-launch of the hottest Atari video game of 1982."[64] David Rooney of The Hollywood Reporter felt that the film was "hobbled by a major misjudgment in its central visual concept" lamenting its execution (such as the poor proportions of the 'cats' to their environments) and deeming the film "exhausting".[65]
In the Los Angeles Times, Justin Chang wrote that "With its grotesque design choices and busy, metronomic editing, Cats is as uneasy on the eyes as a Hollywood spectacle can be, tumbling into an uncanny valley between mangy realism and dystopian artifice."[66] Peter Bradshaw for The Guardian wrote a one-star review parodying "The Naming of Cats" that criticised the visual style and particularly the character design, while lambasting the film as a "dreadful hairball of woe".[67] Manohla Dargis of The New York Times felt that Hooper had made "a robust effort" to adapt the stage musical—which "was always going to be difficult, particularly once the decision was made to create a live-action version rather than an animated one"—and "enlisted some talented performers", but that the film version suffered from a lack of the human connection that theater involves, where performers and audience share a space, without which "all that's left are canned images of fit-looking people meowing and raising their rumps high in the air."[68]
Despite the negative critical reception, Swift's brief appearance received praise, with critics mostly agreeing that her appearance as Bombalurina was one of the film's few highlights.[69] Pete Hammond of Deadline also praised Swift, writing that she "acquits herself nicely as Bombalurina and her signature 'Macavity' number, as well as 'Beautiful Ghosts', written for the end credits by Swift and Lloyd Webber."[70] In addition, critic Guy Lodge called Swift "the best thing in the film" and "the one performer who completely hits their marks and pulls off the lone successful number",[71] while critic Rebecca Lewis labelled Swift's performance as "one of the few genuinely good parts of the film."[72] Patrick Ryan, writing for USA Today, stated that Swift "makes the most of her brief screen time, bringing her unabating charisma to the flirtatious feline" and further expanded that "if there's one thing that's disappointing about Swift's performance, it's that there isn't more of it"
ليست هناك تعليقات:
إرسال تعليق