English Dub Review: Bad Cat

There’s this pattern that happens when I get something new to review. I see the notification, then I go see a trailer to get a feel for what I’m getting into. If it’s something I’m even remotely familiar with, I go in blind and just let it ride. Bad Cat is definitely not that. So I went right to YouTube, and found the trailer. I was pleasantly surprised with what I got. The dubbing was awesome for what was obviously becoming a foreign animated film. The question was, “where the fuck was this film based from?”

Bad Cat was a movie that was originally released back in 2016 in Turkey. Seven years later, we get the english dub. I have to say, if this is adapted from a comic, I have to find a translation or release of this, because I’m really interested.

Going in, I saw the trailer, and I was really impressed with what I saw. This was a pro (read: Dreamworks/Pixar) level animation, probably going a step further. I generally only see animation this detailed when I’m watching the latest World of Warcraft expansion releases. You see a lot of individual hairs animated, as well as greatly exaggerated features like Tank’s eyebrows and Shero’s teeth. There was a lot of good animation, and the fact that it wasn’t from Disney or Dreamworks made things surprising, like I said before. You don’t think outside the box when it comes from animation, especially computer animation, but Odin’s Eye produced a visually stunning video.

However, where the movie stuttered, was the one note characture Shero was for most of the movie. Shero was a degenerate scumbag for about half of the movie. Then Taco, his son, slaps him in the face one time, and Shero magically comes around? Come on, man. That was weak. However, once the bond between Shero and Taco was stronger, the bond between Misscat and him became stronger as well. But the intro of the main villain, Cizer, was kind of weak as well.

I know for a comic it was alright, but for a movie, there had to be more of a build up. It felt like there was enough to go for two movies, but they smashed a lot of story to fit into a single movie. I know there’s only so much source material to go on, but come on. You can always use artistic license to expand.

The first half of Bad Cat was dragging. Most of the issues were above. However, once you get past the first death of Cizer, things start to escalate quickly. The rivalry between the two started to feel like a UFC slugfest, especially after Taco almost died saving Shero by taking a bullet from Cizer. After the first death of Cizer, the movie starts to hit a pacing that makes the movie feel like a movie, and not a rushed mess. I guess the old saying “It isn’t how you start, but how you finish” really is true. The movie felt like a true crescendo, with the heartstring pull with Shero and Taco, and getting back with Tank, and the ending with Misscat.  There was so much in that final act that made the movie as a whole well worth the watch.

In totality, Bad Cat is a really fun watch. Shero is a real piece of shit, even when he comes around to being a “decent” father and husband. But watching him come around to being that decent male cat made it really fun. Watching the bond grow in the second and third act was fun, and I felt genuine sadness when Taco was shot and presumed dead. Then I cheered when Tank came through in his shitty ass little car and almost hit Shero with his car just in time to save Taco, save the apartment, and get the final battle with Cizer.

Watch Bad Cat. This movie ended up being a fun watch that pulled the right emotions during most of the movie.