The Aristocats (1970): "Boy! Your Eyes Are Like Sapphires"

 As one of the most underrated films in the entire Disney franchise, The Aristocats proves to be one of the classics with its simplistic plotline and lovable characters. Since its release in 1970, The Aristocats became a critical and commercial success. Plus, to my surprise, apparently a live-action remake is currently in development! That's definitely something to look forward to if this film is one of your favorites.

Let's dive in to this original story: based in 1910, a mother cat named Duchess and her three kittens (Berlioz, Marie, and Toulouse) live in Paris with a retired opera diva, Madame Adelaide Bonfamille--who truly is a gentle woman and I aspire to be like her one day--and her English butler, Edgar. If you hadn't guessed by the title of this classic, it is obvious that the cats are pampered pets who live a luxurious lifestyle, and are very cultured in art and music like their owner. They even practice playing the piano!

One day, though, while preparing her will with the lawyer, Madame declares that her vast fortune will be first left to her cats, then revert to Edgar once they all pass away. Now this is some real dedication and love for her pets. However, Edgar overhears this and, after incorrectly calculating that he will die before he can inherit the fortune, plots to eliminate the cats--what a heartless man! Planning to kill innocent animals for money... Shame.

To carry out his plan, Edgar quite literally sedates them by putting sleeping pills in a dish of cream, then drives them on his motorcycle out to the countryside in a basket. There, he is ambushed by two hounds named Napoleon and Lafayette, losing his hat, sidecar, umbrella, shoes, and the basket before escaping (and this scene is possibly one of my favorites in the movie because of its timeless humor). The cats are left stranded in the countryside while Madame Adelaide, the house mouse, and her horse discover the furry friends' absence.

In the morning, Duchess meets an alley cat named Thomas O'Malley, who offers to guide her and the kittens to Paris. The group briefly hitchhikes in a milk truck before being chased out by the driver. Later, while crossing a railroad trestle, the cats narrowly avoid an oncoming train, and Marie falls into a river. Literally, these cats and kittens have been through way too much, especially for their young age. Please, give them a break!

To save her, O'Malley immediately dives in and rescues her, and is himself rescued by Amelia and Abigail Gabble, two British geese on holiday (oh, and they are the funniest characters. Honestly, this classic has plenty of funny characters, so if you are also in for a laugh, this is the movie to watch!). The geese lead the cats to the outskirts of Paris, then depart to deal with their inebriated Uncle Waldo.

Meanwhile, Edgar returns to the countryside to retrieve his possessions--the only evidence that can incriminate him--from Napoleon and Lafayette and, after some difficulty, ultimately succeeds.

Traveling across the rooftops of the city, the cats meet up with O'Malley's friend, Scat Cat, and his musicians, who perform the song "Ev'rybody Wants to Be a Cat," or, in other words, a true Disney classic song; perhaps even on the same success level as "Bare Necessities" from The Jungle Book.

At this point, it is obvious that O'Malley and Duchess are starting to like each other. So, after the band has departed, O'Malley and Duchess converse on a nearby rooftop while the kittens listen at a windowsill. Unfortunately, Duchess' loyalty to Madame prompts her to decline O'Malley's marriage proposal. This just proves how loyal pets can be to their owners--but it still makes me sad!

The next day, Duchess and the kittens return to Madame's mansion while O'Malley goes on his way back to being a street cat. Edgar, though, finds Duchess and the kittens before Madame does, and places them in a sack, deciding to ship them to Timbuktu. Literally, they cannot catch a break from this guy. 

The house mouse then catches up with O'Malley at Duchess’ instruction, and O'Malley returns to the mansion, sending the house mouse to find Scat Cat and his gang. Though he struggles to explain the situation to the alley cats, the mouse successfully brings them to O'Malley's aid. Ah, yes, another damsel in distress moment, but I'll forgive Disney for it since this movie is an oldie. 

O'Malley, the alley cats, and the horse comically fight Edgar, while the house mouse frees Duchess and the kittens. At the end of the fight, Edgar is locked in his own packing-case and sent to Timbuktu himself, never to be seen again. Good riddance! 

At the end of the day, the Aristocats return to Madame Adelaide, who, ignorant of the real reason for Edgar's departure, rewrites her will to exclude him (thank god). In fact, Madame adopts O'Malley into the family! She then establishes a charity foundation, housing Paris' stray cats in the mansion. Scat Cat and his gang are the first to move in, and reprise their song so loudly that the two hound dogs can hear it out in the countryside. Madame has quite literally become a cat lady legend, and while I am primarily a dog-person, I can respect her love and respect for these furry friends.

All in all, The Aristocats is a classic Disney film that revolves around a family of aristocratic cats, and how an alley cat acquaintance helps them after a butler has kidnapped them to gain his mistress's fortune, which was intended to go to them. Thanks to the cats' loyalty to their owner as well as a stray's love for a pampered cat, this story ends with the idea that even in bad situations that may occur out of one's control, it is important to reach out to those around you for help, and you may never know how important they will become to you.