Welcome to another weekly review where cats walk on two legs and teenage girls are cat whispers. For this week I decided to go back in time and rewatch the Cat Returns. As it happens, it’s been on my mind to do a Ghibli Marathon, but I thought better of it as it’s been done repeatedly. So I thought I’d just stick to doing one for now. So let’s jump right in!

I know that Ghibli Studio did two films featuring Baron Von Gikkingen, but I prefer The Cat Returns over Whispers of the Heart. Two teenagers declaring their undying affection for each other just doesn’t do it for me. Now that being said I was genuinely surprised at how good the Cat Returns was. The film was better than I remembered, but I guess I shouldn’t have expected any less than a well-animated adventure from a Ghibli Studio movie. Obviously, the film didn’t follow the book exactly but it did its best, and I’d say it was pretty good.

Typical of any teenager, Haru is bogged down as her self-esteem repeatedly takes blows. The boy of her dreams doesn’t notice she likes him and it seems luck isn’t on her side as she keeps having accidents, but this all shifts when she notices a cat on a suicide mission. Now the average person would just let the cat die, but no, not our Disney princess Haru. Haru is acquainted with talking to strays, so it’s no stretch that she would risk her own life to save the cat prince.

Side note: the cat kingdom is rich. Those gifts from the cats weren’t cheap in the movie or the book. Those lacrosse sticks must have cost a fortune unless they were stolen. In the book, they sent her cases of rats in a can. Nasty.

Ultimately, every time she was meet with another disappointment the thought of being a cat seemed more appealing, and the more she thought this way the more cat-like she became. Lazing about as a cat doesn’t sound too bad so long as I don’t recall my past life as a human. Life is tough, and being a teenager is no easy feat. Dealing with crazy hormones, first love, potential rejection, and everything else that goes with life can make anybody depressed and moody, but lucky for Haru things worked out. But honestly, I think I side with Muta and minded my own business. Sorry Kitty.

Side note: how long was Haru away? And why wasn’t her mother more concerned? If at all. At the beginning of the movie, you noticed how she let Haru oversleep right? Lol. Was she fed up with trying to wake Haru up and was trying to teach her a lesson? Or is she just that neglectful? Lol.

Anypoops, I give it a 4 out of 5 rose petals. Tell me what you think.