Okay, this joke has gone on long enough.
I’ve been incredibly skeptical of Tom Hooper’s latest movie musical, Cats, since I first heard it existed. Not only because Tom Hooper’s direction for musicals has been lackluster to say the least, but because everything we’ve been hearing about the production so far has just made it seem absolutely insane. Between CG fur and sending all of his actors to cat school, Hooper is going all in on making this one of the most grand and bizarre musicals of the decade. As someone that just saw Be More Chill, a musical where a nerd eats a microchip with green Mountain Dew that allows him to summon a digital Keanu Reeves to make him popular, I can safely say that this version of Cats takes the cake for strange.
Yet here we are! In order to get people hyped about this movie, we now have a behind the scenes look at the production, with all of the actors talking about how spectacular and amazing the movie is, without actually saying anything meaningful. We get to see a lot of rehearsal time for the songs and dances, with Hooper praising how fantastic everyone is with everyone else also heralding how awe inspiring Hooper is for directing Cats. But really, this is just an excuse to use Taylor Swift to try and sell the movie since she’s in the majority of the footage and Taylor Swift is one of the biggest stars on the planet.
To be perfectly fair, I do appreciate how the sets all look fantastic in detail and are freaking massive. To see that much effort spent on legitimate sets is great to see in a movie musical, and at least it looks like the sets will be great regardless of the final product. Can’t say much for the actors since while there are some heavy hitters involved with the film, the majority of the cast are singers that haven’t shown they’re decent actors. When was the last time you were swayed by the acting performance of Jason DeRulo? A good singer does not make a good actor. Just look at the majority of Madonna’s filmography for further proof.
The video ends with confirmation that a trailer will be released this Friday, which comes across less like a hype inducing promise and more of a threat. On Friday we will live in a world that has borne witness to Cats, and I’m calling it now that that trailer will produce some saucy memes.
Cats releases December 20, 2019.
