Cats & Dogs (film series)

Last updated
Cats & Dogs
Cats & Dogs - film series logo.jpg
Official film series logo
Distributed by Warner Bros.
Release date
2001–2020
Country United States
Language English
Budget$162,000,000 (total of 3 films)
Box office$332,330,173 (total of 3 films)

The Cats & Dogs film series consists of spy-comedies, produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment, including two theatrical films, and one straight-to-home video release. Centered around a conflict of the ages between the titular species, the plot involves agents of two opposing covert operations agencies of rival animals. The teams of spies work together, unbeknownst to its human inhabitants.

Contents

The first film was met with mixed critical reception. Praise was directed at its watchability for an audience of all ages, as well as its concept, creativity and effective use of special effects. [1] [2] Overall it fared well at the box office. [3] Conversely, the second installment was met with mostly negative critical reviews with criticism for its clichéd formulaic plot, [4] while receiving praise for its "faster, funnier" nature, [5] but was a box office flop. [6] The third film was met with overwhelming negative reviews with criticism directed towards its story plot, its use of juvenile humor, poor CGI special effects, and unoriginality. [7] Despite this, George Lopez's role in the story was noted as a redeeming contribution to the film. [8] As the film was a straight-to-video release, its sales compared to its budget lost money for the studio. [9]

Film

TitleU.S. release dateDirectorScreenwriter(s)Producers
Cats & Dogs July 4, 2001 Lawrence Guterman John Requa & Glenn Ficarra Christopher DeFaria, Andrew Lazar, Craig Perry & Warren Zide
Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore July 30, 2010 Brad Peyton Ron J. Friedman & Steve Bencich Andrew Lazar & Polly Johnsen
Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! October 13, 2020 Sean McNamara Scott BindleyAndrew Lazar & David Fliegel

Cats & Dogs (2001)

A high-tech, secret war takes place throughout neighborhoods worldwide that human beings are not aware of stemming from an ancient rivalry between cats and dogs. When a Persian cat named Mr. Tinkles implements a plan to destroy a breakthrough vaccination that is intended to end all human allergies to man's best friend, a Beagle named Louis "Lou" Brody is recruited by D.O.G., a discreet espionage organization of canines. Under the mentorship of an Anatolian Shepherd, Lou scrambles to foil the nefarious plans of M.E.O.W.S., the counterpart organization of felines. [10] [11] [12]

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (2010)

Amongst generations of battles between cats and dogs, a Sphynx cat former agent of M.E.O.W.S. named Ivana Clawyu develops a diabolical plan against canines and her former feline collaborators, with a new alias of Kitty Galore. In defense of themselves and their humans, agents of separate spy organizations (D.O.G. and M.E.O.W.S.) team up in an unprecedented union to stop Galore from exacting her revenge on the world. [5]

Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! (2020)

An American Shorthair cat named Gwen and a Border Collie named Roger are spies covertly working together to defend the world and the unknowing humans. The partnership of cats and dogs comes from the Great Truce, which stopped the ancient rivalry between them for the last decade. A villainous mastermind cockatoo named Pablo seeks to destroy the long-standing truce, by wirelessly manipulating frequencies that only the felines and canines can hear. Together, agents of F.A.R.T. (Furry Animals Rivalry Termination) work to stop the foul-play before it permanently separates the species. [10]

Primary cast and characters

List indicator(s)

This section includes characters who will appear or have appeared in more than two films in the series.

CharacterTitle
Cats & Dogs Cats & Dogs:
The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Cats & Dogs 3:
Paws Unite!
Louis "Lou" Brody Tobey Maguire V Neil Patrick Harris V
Butch Alec Baldwin V Nick Nolte V
Mr. Tinkles Sean Hayes V
Ivy Susan Sarandon V
The Mastiff Charlton Heston V
Calico Jon Lovitz V Wallace Shawn V
Dimitri Kennelkoff
The Russian
Glenn Ficarra V
Diggs James Marsden V
Catherine
Agent 47
Christina Applegate V
Tab Lazenby Roger Moore V
Ivana Clawyu
Kitty Galore
Bette Midler V
Sam Michael Clarke Duncan V
Roger Max Greenfield V
Gwen Melissa Rauch V
Pablo George Lopez V
Gruff K-9 J. K. Simmons V
Paws Phil LaMarr V
Scrumptious Elizabeth Daily V
Zeek Paul Dobson V
Duke Michael Daingerfield V

Additional crew and production details

FilmCrew/Detail
ComposerCinematographerEditor(s)Production
companies
Distributing
company
Running time
Cats & Dogs John Debney Julio Macat Rick W. Finney & Michael A. Stevenson Warner Bros. Pictures,
Village Roadshow Pictures,
NPV Entertainment,
Mad Chance Productions,
Zide/Perry Productions,
BenderSpink Productions
Warner Bros. Pictures1hr 27mins
Cats & Dogs:
The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Christopher Lennertz Steven Poster Julie RogersVillage Roadshow Pictures,
CD2 Films,
Mad Chance Productions,
Polymorphic Pictures
1hr 22mins
Cats & Dogs 3:
Paws Unite!
John Coda Adam SliwinskiSimon Davidson Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Warner Home Video 1hr 24mins

Reception

Box office and financial performance

FilmBox office grossBox office rankingHome video
sales gross
Gross
total income
BudgetWorldwide net
total income
Ref(s)
North AmericaOther territoriesWorldwideAll-time
North America
All-time
worldwide
North America
Cats & Dogs $93,385,515$107,324,849$200,710,364#813#892Figures not available>$200,710,364$60,000,000>$140,710,364 [3] [13]
Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore $43,585,753$69,440,630$113,026,383#2,001#1,374$12,844,122$125,870,505$85,000,000$40,870,505 [14] [15]
Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! $4,331,546$4,331,546#6,062#9,549$1,417,758$5,749,304$17,000,000[ citation needed ]-$11,250,696 [9]
Totals$136,971,268$181,097,025$318,068,293x̅ #2,959x̅ #3,938>$14,261,880$332,330,173$162,000,000>$170,330,173

Critical and public response

Film Rotten Tomatoes Metacritic CinemaScore
Cats & Dogs54% (117 reviews) [16] 47/100 (26 reviews) [17]
Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore13% (99 reviews) [18] 30/100 (22 reviews) [19] B− [20]
Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite!11% (9 reviews) [21] TBD [22]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat</span> Small domesticated carnivorous mammal

The cat, commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat, is a small domesticated carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species of the family Felidae. Recent advances in archaeology and genetics have shown that the domestication of the cat occurred in the Near East around 7500 BC. It is commonly kept as a house pet and farm cat, but also ranges freely as a feral cat avoiding human contact. It is valued by humans for companionship and its ability to kill vermin. Its retractable claws are adapted to killing small prey like mice and rats. It has a strong, flexible body, quick reflexes, and sharp teeth, and its night vision and sense of smell are well developed. It is a social species, but a solitary hunter and a crepuscular predator. Cat communication includes vocalizations like meowing, purring, trilling, hissing, growling, and grunting as well as cat body language. It can hear sounds too faint or too high in frequency for human ears, such as those made by small mammals. It secretes and perceives pheromones.

<i>Cats & Dogs</i> 2001 spy-comedy film directed by Lawrence Guterman

Cats & Dogs is a 2001 spy-comedy film directed by Lawrence Guterman and written by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra. It stars Jeff Goldblum, Elizabeth Perkins and Alexander Pollock, with the voices of Tobey Maguire, Alec Baldwin, Sean Hayes, Susan Sarandon, Charlton Heston, Jon Lovitz, Joe Pantoliano and Michael Clarke Duncan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat anatomy</span> Anatomy of domesticated felines

Cat anatomy comprises the anatomical studies of the visible parts of the body of a domestic cat, which are similar to those of other members of the genus Felis.

<i>Carnivore protoparvovirus 1</i> Species of parvovirus

Carnivore protoparvovirus 1 is a species of parvovirus that infects carnivorans. It causes a highly contagious disease in both dogs and cats separately. The disease is generally divided into two major genogroups: FPV containing the classical feline panleukopenia virus (FPLV), and CPV-2 containing the canine parvovirus type 2 (CPV-2) which appeared in the 1970s.

Epilepsy in animals is a group of neurological disorders characterized by seizures, caused by uncontrolled, abnormal bursts of electrical activity in the brain. They can start and stop very abruptly and last any amount of time from a few seconds to a few minutes. Canine epilepsy is often genetic but epilepsy in cats and other pets is rarer, likely because there is no hereditary component to epilepsy in these animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat communication</span> Feline means of sending or receiving information

Cats communicate for a variety of reasons, including to show happiness, express anger, solicit attention, and observe potential prey. Additionally, they collaborate, play, and share resources. When cats communicate with humans, they do so to get what they need or want, such as food, water, attention, or play. As such, cat communication methods have been significantly altered by domestication. Studies have shown that domestic cats tend to meow much more than feral cats. They rarely meow to communicate with fellow cats or other animals. Cats can socialize with each other and are known to form "social ladders," where a dominant cat is leading a few lesser cats. This is common in multi-cat households.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vaccination of dogs</span>

Vaccination of dogs is the practice of animal vaccination applied to dogs. Programs in this field have contributed both to the health of dogs and to the public health. In countries where routine rabies vaccination of dogs is practiced, for example, rabies in humans is reduced to a very rare event.

<i>Jingle Cats</i> Christmas novelty songs

Jingle Cats and its follow-up Jingle Dogs are a series of Christmas novelty song albums from producer Mike Spalla. A third series was released in 1997 titled Jingle Babies. Jingle Cats and Jingle Dogs were released as albums and videos. A 1998 video game of Jingle Cats was released in Japan.

<i>Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore</i> 2010 film by Brad Peyton

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore is a 2010 spy comedy film directed by Brad Peyton in his directorial debut, produced by Andrew Lazar, Polly Johnsen, Greg Michael and Brent O'Connor and written by Ron J. Friedman and Steve Bencich based on the characters by John Requa and Glenn Ficarra. The film stars Chris O'Donnell and Jack McBrayer with an ensemble voice cast of James Marsden, Nick Nolte, Christina Applegate, Katt Williams, Bette Midler, Neil Patrick Harris, Sean Hayes, Joe Pantoliano, Michael Clarke Duncan, Wallace Shawn and Roger Moore. The film is a stand-alone sequel to the 2001 film Cats & Dogs, with more emphasis on its animal characters than the previous film, and was released on July 30, 2010, by Warner Bros. Pictures. It received mostly negative reviews from film critics and grossed $112.5 million on an $85 million budget.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meow</span> Vocalization by cats

A meow or miaow is a cat vocalization. Meows may have diverse tones in terms of their sound, and what is heard can vary from being chattered to calls, murmurs, and whispers. Adult cats rarely meow to each other. Thus, an adult cat meowing to human beings is generally considered a post-domestication extension of meowing by kittens: a call for attention. Felines usually communicate with each other via their shared sense of smell, yet with people they often make verbal cues around behavior, such as having a specific sound indicate a desire to go outside.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat training</span> Modifying a cats behavior

Cat training is the process of modifying a domestic cat's behavior for entertainment or companionship purposes. Training is commonly used to reduce unwanted or problematic behaviors in domestic cats, to enhance interactions between humans and pet cats, and to allow them to coexist comfortably. There are various methods for training cats which employ different balances between reward and punishment.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cat–dog relationship</span> Interaction between the main house pets

Cats and dogs have a range of interactions. The natural instincts of each species lead towards antagonistic interactions, though individual animals can have non-aggressive relationships with each other, particularly under conditions where humans have socialized non-aggressive behaviors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Henri, le Chat Noir</span> Web series known for its cat protagonist

Henri, le Chat Noir is a web series of short films on the existential musings of the cat Henri, written and directed by William Braden. Henri was portrayed by Henry (2003–2020), a male longhair tuxedo cat. Videos featuring Henri have been viewed millions of times, and have been featured by news outlets such as The Huffington Post and ABC News.

The Internet Cat Video Festival was a national competition that celebrates cat videos on the internet. Many of these festivals include appearances by special guests and celebricats, live music, costume contests, art projects, and booths hosting local animal resource nonprofits. The 2013 Minneapolis show featured a cat sculpture made out of butter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dog-like cat</span> Behavioral pattern found in domestic cats

Dog-like cat is a term in popular culture that refers to specific breeds of domestic cats that have unusual behavioral tendencies that are reminiscent of young domestic dogs. These are within the scope of feline behavior, and may be enhanced through selective breeding. These behaviors, not specific to any breed, include following people around from room to room, the desire to receive frequent moments of physical affection such as being held and petted, a lack of aggression toward some fellow animals, and a placid nature. Certain owners may successfully attempt to train their cats to perform on command, such as via clicker training, akin to canines and other domesticated animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cats and the Internet</span> Popular part of Internet culture

Images and videos of domestic cats make up some of the most viewed content on the World Wide Web. ThoughtCatalog has described cats as the "unofficial mascot of the Internet".

Feline cognitive dysfunction (FCD) is a cognitive disease prevalent in cats, directly related to the brain aging, leading to changes in awareness, deficits in learning and memory, and decreased responsiveness to stimuli. It is also known as cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS). Alzheimer's disease and dementia in humans are diseases with comparable symptoms and pathology.

<i>Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite!</i> American 2020 film directed by Sean McNamara

Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! is a 2020 American spy action comedy film, starring the voices of Melissa Rauch, Max Greenfield, and George Lopez. It is a stand-alone sequel to 2010's Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore and the third and final film of the Cats & Dogs film series. Unlike the first two installments, Paws Unite! was released straight to video in the United States on September 15, 2020. It is also the only film that does not feature any cast members from the previous installments.

Gabby's Dollhouse is an American live-action/computer-animated interactive preschool television series created by Blue's Clues veterans Traci Paige Johnson and Jennifer Twomey for Netflix which first premiered on January 5, 2021. In the series, Gabby and her cat friends called the Gabby Cats go on adventures inside the dollhouse.

References

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  2. Ebert, Roger (July 4, 2001). "Cats And Dogs". RogerEbert.com. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  3. 1 2 "Cats & Dogs (2001) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
  4. Tobias, Scott (July 29, 2010). "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge Of Kitty Galore". AV Club. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  5. 1 2 Leydon, Joe (July 25, 2010). "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore". Variety. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  6. "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore". Bomb Report. July 30, 2010. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  7. "Cats & Dogs: Paws Unite! review – unfunny third instalment of the pet-centric yarn". The Guardian. October 7, 2020.
  8. Green, Jennifer (October 13, 2020). "Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite". Common Sense Media. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  9. 1 2 "Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! (2020) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
  10. 1 2 Felperin, Leslie (October 7, 2020). "Cats & Dogs: Paws Unite! review – unfunny third instalment of the pet-centric yarn". The Guardian. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  11. Bottomley, Jack (December 10, 2020). "Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite!". Starburst. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  12. Paatsch, Leigh (December 10, 2020). "Heraldsun.com.au | Subscribe to the Herald Sun for exclusive stories". Herald Sun. Retrieved May 14, 2021.
  13. "Cats & Dogs". Box Office Mojo.
  14. "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (2010) - Financial Information". The Numbers.
  15. "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore". Box Office Mojo.
  16. "Cats & Dogs (2001)" via www.rottentomatoes.com.
  17. "Cats & Dogs" via www.metacritic.com.
  18. "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore (2010)" via www.rottentomatoes.com.
  19. "Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore" via www.metacritic.com.
  20. "CinemaScore". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved April 15, 2022.
  21. "Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite! (2020)" via www.rottentomatoes.com.
  22. "Cats & Dogs 3: Paws Unite" via www.metacritic.com.