Cats & Dogs (2001)

54% of critics liked it
(115 reviews)
41% of users liked it
(423,988 ratings)

This talking-animal action comedy from Lawrence Guterman, the co-director of Antz (1998), follows on the heels of the Babe and Dr. Dolittle films. Unknown to humans, a secret war has been raging between cats and dogs for eons, but a fragile truce has long held the order of the animal kingdom in… More This talking-animal action comedy from Lawrence Guterman, the co-director of Antz (1998), follows on the heels of the Babe and Dr. Dolittle films. Unknown to humans, a secret war has been raging between cats and dogs for eons, but a fragile truce has long held the order of the animal kingdom in place. Now the balance of power has tipped, as a researcher, Professor Brody (Jeff Goldblum), is about to invent a vaccine that will erase all human allergies to dogs. This is too much for the autocratic Mr. Tinkles (Sean Hayes), a white Persian kitty bent on world domination. The Brody home becomes ground zero for the renewed conflict between feline and canine, with a young Beagle puppy named Lou (Tobey Maguire) caught in the middle as the new point man for his species' cause. Cats and Dogs co-stars Elizabeth Perkins and Alexander Pollock, as well as the vocal talents of Susan Sarandon, Alec Baldwin, Jon Lovitz, Michael Clarke Duncan, and Joe Pantoliano. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

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Rating, Runtime: PG, 1 hr. 27 min.
Directed By: Larry Guterman, Lawrence Guterman
Written By: John Requa, Glenn Ficarra
Genres: Action & Adventure, Kids & Family, Comedy

In Theaters: Jul 4, 2001 Wide
On DVD: Oct 16, 2001
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures

Critic Reviews

Jeff Strickler, Minneapolis Star Tribune
Falls victim to a common pitfall of special-effects movies: The technology takes precedent over the characters and story.
Jane Horwitz, Washington Post
A surprisingly witty and sophisticated spy movie spoof that will tickle adult pet lovers and still capture kids 6 and older with its boy-and- his-dog love story and pet slapstick.
Andrew Sarris, New York Observer
After a while, the film's massive explosions make Swordfish look like a chick flick.
Susan Stark, Detroit News
High-end family entertainment.
Terry Lawson, Detroit Free Press
Spends too much time chewing on its computer effects or purring over its animatronic puppetry and too little taming its amusing premise.
Nell Minow, Common Sense Media
Plenty of heart and hijinks mixed with litter box humor.
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
For this adult, the humor was labored and juvenile, the action frenetic, the jokes lacking subtlety or wit, the characters shallow and two-dimensional. (Blu-ray Edition)
John J. Puccio, Movie Metropolis
...juvenile caricature the whole way, so adults had better beware.
Rob Gonsalves, eFilmCritic.com
Cats & Dogs is, at its absolute peak, faintly amusing.
Matthew Turner, ViewLondon
Mr Tinkles has to endure the humiliation of being dressed up in ridiculous outfits by his eccentric owner, meaning that he gets to deliver lines such as "EVIL%u2026does NOT wear a BONNET!"
James Plath, Reel.com
the cat animation is as clumsy as a bad ventriloquist at a children's party
Betty Jo Tucker, ReelTalk Movie Reviews
Those incredible animals steal the show here -- just like in 'Babe.'

Read all 12 critic reviews

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

Directors C

The film's concept is quite interesting and Im sure a lot of people would have loved the idea of it. But the film itself is a complete mess. The jokes aren't that great and are rather hit and miss for all the family including the children. There's no development into… More
The film's concept is quite interesting and Im sure a lot of people would have loved the idea of it. But the film itself is a complete mess. The jokes aren't that great and are rather hit and miss for all the family including the children. There's no development into the character of both the humans and the pet animals.
Anthony L

Clever CGI vs. Unimaginative idea. I've got nothing wrong with the realms of fantasy, talking animals is fine by me but I think they went too far in humanising the animals here. It also wasn't very funny and to be honest I hate these films and would rather my kids watch… More
Clever CGI vs. Unimaginative idea. I've got nothing wrong with the realms of fantasy, talking animals is fine by me but I think they went too far in humanising the animals here. It also wasn't very funny and to be honest I hate these films and would rather my kids watch something else. Give me Animal Magic with Johnny Morris any day!
Alexander D

CATS & DOGS is a silly family movie. Nothing funny.
Bethany M

Funny animated film.
erika b

This film is about the war against cats and dogs. Pros good action and spy parts. Cons Weak plot Bad acting Those cats are bad in this film.
Brad W

Cheesy and a waste of talent
Michael E

A kids film of little worth
Lady D

Some kids films have the ability to be better than some of the films suitable for older people - sadly, this is not one of them. I can see the appeal for kids, it's novel, but I lost interest very early on.
EightThirty .

07/06/2010 (DVD) I saw this back in the day when I was still in school and I loved it! I thought I'd go out of my way and hire it cause I am aware that there is a sequel coming soon so I wanna refresh the memory before "Part 2" is out. Watching this again was quite… More
07/06/2010 (DVD) I saw this back in the day when I was still in school and I loved it! I thought I'd go out of my way and hire it cause I am aware that there is a sequel coming soon so I wanna refresh the memory before "Part 2" is out. Watching this again was quite interesting. The humor is targeted for children so I noticed I didn't laugh as much as I did from what I remembered. It's better if you watch the film from a 9 year old's frame of mind and then you'll start laughing. (I know it sounds dumb but it worked for me) I reckon this is a worthy check and the whole talking animal thing is truly believable!
Tim S

Meh.
Thomas B

whilst it is a great film for children, the film lacks substance, and once past the initial awe of cats and dogs talking, their is nothing much left to look at
Coxxie M

cats and dogs being able talk and have faggy litte wars is not funny... its just stupid... i mean ninja cats??? what did they smokoe to come up with that. ive been studying my sister's cat for a while now and hes anything but ninja-like
Ross C

Silly fun. Evil cats versus good dogs in a real animal / CG SFX mash-up movie.
Dean !

A great family fun film that has plenty of humour from a talented cast. The different range of effects used for the Cat and Dogs are great.
xGary X

A brilliant concept mediocrely executed. Nowhere near as funny as it could have been, but still mildly entertaining.
Candy R

Funny film about how cats and dogs behave.
Rachel F

Really cute.
Lafe F

It looks cute, but it's not! The dogs are like American soldiers and the cats are evil foreigners, for an unfunny wargame between the two species. They are given too many human traits to be cute or adorable. The effects are finely done, but I couldn't get into this movie… More
It looks cute, but it's not! The dogs are like American soldiers and the cats are evil foreigners, for an unfunny wargame between the two species. They are given too many human traits to be cute or adorable. The effects are finely done, but I couldn't get into this movie much.
Dean M

Cats and dogs are funny in their employing state of the art, hi-tech Mission Impossible style gadgetry.
danny d

i heard good things, this flick was not very good