Cat Daddies

This was a cute idea for a documentary with the intent of (apparently) dispelling stereotypes about masculinity. Unfortunately it collapses under its own weight, often times reinforcing these stereotypes instead of correcting them.

The strange narrative of "I've never had a pet cat because I'm a dude" seems pretty ridiculous. The guys claim they've never been around cats and I think one says he'd never even seen one as a child. Did they all grow up on a deserted island??

Most people grow up with a cat, or have a friend who has a cat, or a relative, etc. Unless you have an allergy to cats, I don't understand how you can go your entire childhood without any interaction with a cat of some kind. The director presents cats as some rare and foreign species. It makes it difficult to take any of these stories seriously.

There are a few exceptions. I enjoyed the man who started a catch, spay/neuter, and release program in Brooklyn. That was awesome and even educational. The homeless man pulled at your heart strings. And I enjoyed the backstories of some of the social media famous cats.

But for every good moment, there is a counterbalance of truly cringy scenes. Multiple men joke about using their cats to score dates with women. It just reinforces this shallow stereotype of one-dimensional men who'll do anything to hook up.

How about featuring some truly authentic men who've loved cats their entire life with no ulterior motive? I know plenty of men at work who love cats without any qualms about masculinity. Again, this documentary claims to squash that stereotype, but only seems to reinforce it.

And it's interesting that gay men are completely erased from the narrative. A lot of gay men are cat lovers, so it would have been great to hear some stories from someone who's gay. Instead we see a lot of typical "bro" types who want a pat on the back for having a cat.

Ah, well. The cats themselves are adorable. I enjoyed seeing them and learning more about them.

I normally don't like documentaries, but I love Cat Daddies. It has everything, storylines, music, emotion, looks and feels wonderful. It's touching, heartwarming and uplifting. I'd watch it again and again. And I'm eager for more, to follow up with a couple of these cats. I wholeheartedly recommend this movie for everyone, even if you don't like cats, the human stories are compelling! If you want to see an interview with the director-producer, learn why and how she made the film, her own cat story, the challenges during pandemic, and much more, check out @TheKittyBoss on YouTube or the The Kitty Boss podcast everywhere podcasts are available.

After this film, I was finally convinced that I am an unconditional cat person. A few stories, a few furry bundles of joy and pressing social issues. Perhaps the kindest documentary film you can imagine. It's also worth mentioning and thanking the MOYGOLOS studio, which did a great job dubbing the characters (with the exception of the cats, of course). In some places, I admit honestly, it becomes quite boring to watch due to the pace of the story. But on the other hand, this is a documentary, not an action film. 'Cats' is a calm, kind, sometimes sad, but not very interesting film. The biggest plus is that we are shown real people with their real stories. I think that partly thanks to this film, some people can pay attention to the problem of unfortunate homeless pets around the world and try to help at least financially. But from a purely cinematic point of view, I will say that the film is long and could have been made shorter by at least 1/3, or even half. But overall, the film is sweet and kind and leaves a pleasant aftertaste.

I caught 'Cat Daddies' last night at a showing in Columbus, OH and really enjoyed it! It's a pretty straightforward premise: the doc features 8 or so men and their pet cats and shows how their human-animal bond enhances the life of each "cat daddy". I kept expecting it to morph into a lecture on masculinity and the history of the femeninization of cat ownership (which I actually would have dug, too) but it didn't -- probably to its benefit.

The issues of gender, the effects of global warming, the state of American healthcare, Covid, homelessness, race, poverty, social media, etc are all present and important parts of these men's lives -- but they are woven through the film in a skillfully apolitical way. By steering clear of a social "deep dive", 'Cat Daddies' allows the focus to stay on the individual, emotional bonds between men and their cats, and -- like pet ownership itself -- remains something (most) everyone will probably enjoy!

This documentary is funny, sweet, inspiring, moving, and soooooo good for the soul! I'm one of those people who rarely writes reviews, but I feel compelled to spread the word on this one! See it if you can!!