Cats

Who knew a spontaneous decision to see the terrible CG nightmare fuel CATS adaptation would make me watch the 1998 CATS-- and then become a fan of this weird, weird musical?

The new movie truly is bad, but the original material, much maligned over time, is actually pretty amazing. I love the variety of musical styles in all the songs, the sense of community among all the characters, even those bizarre stylized costumes and make-up. This is a fun musical, all around, and I can see why trying to make it more "cinematic" does not suit the material. The 1998 adaptation seems to essentially just shoot the stage show as it is, with a few close-ups and cinematic flourishes for good effect.

While I would recommend the 2019 movie for those who love hilariously bad films, the 1998 film is the better choice if you want to see just why CATS made billions of dollars.

Please watch this version instead of the 2019 film version. This version is so much better and quite frankly features the best cast of Cats yet. If you can't find the dvd all the clips are available to watch on the Cats YouTube page.

What else is there to be said? Nothing, so I'll just say what I thought. It took me years to get round to Cats. I knew nothing about it until I put it on. Though of course I somehow knew the words to that infamous song when it came on, thus is its complete suffusion into popular consciousness. I didn't know what I was watching for the first hour. It made no sense. However near the end something clicked and I totally understood why it was so popular and enduring. It's because the only way to watch it is through a child's mind. You cannot try to grasp on anything, you just have to let yourself go on the wacky innocent fun ride and let your feet tap and hands clap when they want to even if they don't know why. Because there is something about it that really makes you feel safe and want to accept the invite to fall into wonder and bright lights and entertainment for simply the love and sake of it. In that regard it is very unique and I understand why it was such a phenomenon. To try to make any logical and critical review of it is just missing the point so not a lot can really be said nor should it. Though one critical note which is I think appropriate is to say that the cast and choreography is really great in how they bring cat humans to life on stage through movement. And seeing this after the existence of the 2019 version (terrible) just puts into perspective how great the staging and choreography is. And also this filmed version is a real nice production with lots of cuts and close ups for you to feel really involved in the show. My fav songs were rum tum tugger, and mr macavofy.

Since I first saw the musical, "Cats", in 1987, I have always wanted to see it on video. I was thrilled when it finally arrived. I immediately bought it.

The video performance was terrific: better than I expected. Instead of seeing it from the viewpoint of being in the audience, cameras were actually on stage, moving throughout the performers! The sound is terrific, and it played on my audio system wonderfully.

Of course, there is a flaw in the video. To me, it is actually a glaring flaw: a major segment of the musical, my favorite sequence in fact, is missing. Maybe it was cut for time, but I was very disappointed. "Growltugger's Last Stand" is one of the more elaborately staged portions of "Cats". For it to be removed from this performance will certainly upset many of the true fans of "Cats".

I was prepared to score a 10 out of 10 for this show, but with the editing, I can only score it a 7. Andrew Lloyd Webber himself produced this video. He should have left that portion in.

George

The fact that this Great Performances special, "Cats," was filmed on a stage like a performance of the show, but not before a live audience, offers pluses and minuses. The closeups reveal the actors' facial expressions very clearly, which is a great plus, particularly in the case of Elaine Page's Grizabella. Also, the sound is clearer than in recordings of this show. However, the special is a little weak on conveying the excitment of being in a live theater. Nevertheless, on the whole it was a good show.

For all the theatrical appeal, visual appeal, and the long runs, "Cats" is not the greatest thing to have ever hit musical theater. It's long on the above mentioned theatrics and visuals, but way too short on plot and substance. But it is really not a bad show by any means. The songs (Poetry from a book of T.S. Elliot's set to Andrew Lloyd Webber's music) are catchy and engaging, performed by a very energetic cast. The dancing is good, too. And as for the casting, that is also well-done. I would have loved to see Betty Buckley recreate her Broadway role of Grizabella, but Paige, who played the role in London, is not bad at all; her expressions, as I said, are... well, very expressive, and her rendition of "Memory" is just as good and moving as Buckley's. Ken Page, the original Broadway Old Deutoronomy, is also good. Sir John Mills' cameo as Gus, the Theatre Cat, is exploitive but touching. (And you can see why they cut his character's "Growltiger's Last Stand:" he may not have been able to get through it, unfortunatly)

Having not seen this show on stage yet, I think this special is a pretty good substitute for it. Perhaps you will feel the same way.