Universal Pictures
Starring: Louis C.K., Lake Bell, Steve Coogan
Directed by: Chris Renaud, Yarrow Cheney

Cat Out of the Bag Alert!  This review contains some spoilers for this film!

Synopsis: Max (voiced by Louis C.K.) is a dog who is happy with his life until his owner brings home a stray named Duke (Eric Stonestreet) and turns his life upside down.

Cartoon Cats: The film features several cat characters, but the main cat is Chloe (voiced by Lake Bell), an overweight gray tabby who lives above Max. Chloe raids her owner’s refrigerator and helps herself to a turkey, but not without some initial hesitation.

Chloe is Max’s friend and confidante and gives him advice about his new roommate, even though she admits she isn’t that invested in his problems.

Chloe helps rally Max’s friends to help Gidget (voiced by Jenny Slate) to go find him when he and Duke become lost.

Poor Chloe is humiliated when they reach Pops’ place and she accidentally makes a fool of herself after getting stuck in a mailing tube and spazzing out. The video even ends up on YouTube!

Chloe catches the eye of aging dog Pops (voiced by Dana Carvey), who doesn’t seem to mind that she is a cat.

In the end Chloe returns to her owner, who scoops the heavy cat up in her loving arms (and even tolerates a bite!)

Another major cat character is Ozone (voiced by Steve Coogan), a feral Sphynx cat who leads a gang of alley cats.

Ozone and his black cat sidekick steal the collars from Max and Duke, who happen to wander into their alley.

Ozone is also confronted by Gidget and her falcon friend Tiberius (Albert Brooks) when they want to know what has happened to Max.

Other cats in the film include Ozone’s gang, a huge number of alley cats who back up their leader when Duke threatens them.

Most notable among the cat gang is a tiny grey kitten who turns into a scary killer whenever needed.

A snobbish Himalayan cat greets Duke when he returns to his former home, first with a hiss and growl and then with some bad news.

A cat also helps Pops and the others get over the solar panels on their journey to the sewers.

There are also several cats among the Flushed Pets, animals living in the sewer who have been abandoned by their owners.

Numerous cats are also present and partying in Pops’ place. One large cat is launching kittens at a bullseye on the wall where they stick with their tiny claws.

There is also an elderly woman who lives in Max’s apartment building who owns a large group of cats.

Final Mewsings: Do you really want to know what your cat gets up to when you’re not home?

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