Josie and the Pussycats

I never saw the original cartoon but decided to pick up 2001's "Josey and the Pussycats" because Tara Reid's such a cutie and it looked like some fun entertainment.

Yes, it's fun and the girls are attractive (also featuring Rachael Leigh Cook & Rosario Dawson) but, surprisingly, "Josey and the Pussycats" shoots for something deeper. As my title blurb points out, this is an amusing and potent satire on the power and manipulation of the entertainment industry.

Alan Cumming is outstanding as the villainous band manager who uses, abuses and throws away at whim. His opening scene with the fictional boyband Du Jour is worth the price of admission! Parker Posey is also good as his diabolical superior.

Ever wonder why all those musicians die in mysterious plane crashes, overdoses, etc. at the height of their fame? How about all those successful government cover-ups? How do artists with little actual talent and songwriting abilities become hugely popular while the truly talented artists languish in obscurity (like Meliah Rage)? Why do you sometimes have this insane drive for a Big Mac or Coke? "Josie and the Pussycats" explains all, lol.

As for the doofuses who complain about the product placement, they all live on Aduh Street.

The film runs 98 minutes.

GRADE: B

It didnt do too well at launch because it was unfairly compared by Ebert as a Spice Girls movie clone. Unfair and damaging. He was nearly 60 - this wasn't a film for him and he didn't have the foresight this film had to see where teenage pop culture was going. Watch this now and you think - "how did they know?" - the tongue in cheek parody of the music industry and teen marketing is amusingly encapsulated in a film with good rock tunes and a stereotypical fun, teen storyline.

I think this film failed because people thought it would be more loyal to the comic / cartoon but it tried to be a bit more clever than that. Sadly, the audience at the time were not ready for that. Look at comic to movie executions and you see the same sarcasm and self deprecation that this exudes.

Also, Rachel Leigh Cook, Tara Cook & Rosario Dawson do a grand job as the leads and Alan Cumming hams it up wonderfully.

Also - DuJour - on the money.

THIS IS A CULT CLASSIC UNDISCOVERED GEM. Amazing songs, hilarious 2001 style, and a goofy Zoolander-type industry spoof with DIVERSE WOMEN as the leads????? Um, okay I get why it wasn't a critical hit but come on, this is FUNNY. Missi Pyle, Parker Posey and Alan Cumming are all hysterical and I quote this movie all the time with my friends. Do not watch this thinking it will change your life. But I guarantee you, if you actually give it a chance, it will make you LAUGH. And that's better.

I know that Josie and the Pussycats is a ridiculous adaptation of a silly comic strip. I know the jokes are dated and its look is firmly trapped in the 2000s. Despite all that, I enjoy watching this movie. It still makes me smile & laugh. I think the cast had a blast making this movie, and it shows. The songs are a lot of fun, too. It's not great cinema, but it's the kind of absurd amusement I need every now and then.

I never saw the original cartoon or read the comics on which it was based, but "Josie and the Pussycats" (2001) is fun and the three protagonists are attractive & enthusiastic (Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid & Rosario Dawson). Yet the movie shoots for something deeper as this is an amusing and potent satire on the influence and manipulation of the entertainment industry.

Alan Cumming is outstanding as the villainous band manager who uses bands, abuses them and throws them away at whim. His opening scene with the fictional boyband Du Jour is worth the price of admission. Parker Posey is also good as his diabolical superior. Curvy and towering Missi Pyle is also on hand as Alexandra.

Ever wonder why all those musicians die in mysterious plane crashes, overdoses, etc. at the height of their fame? How about all those successful government cover-ups? How do artists with little actual talent and songwriting abilities become hugely popular, usually overnight, while the truly talented artists languish in obscurity? Why do you sometimes have this insane drive for a Big Mac or Coke? "Josie and the Pussycats" explains all, lol.

As for those who complain about the product placement, they all live on Aduh Street.

Unfortunately, the great set-up of the first hour sorta peters out in the last act. It's okay, just not up to the quality of the first two acts, as far as compelling writing goes.

The film runs 98 minutes.

GRADE: B