Ramona and Beezus (2010)

Starring: Miller
Directed by: Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum

This review contains a Kitty Carnage Warning!

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

Synopsis: Based on the popular children’s book series by Beverly Cleary, Ramona Quimby (Joey King) is the imaginative younger sister of Beezus (Selena Gomez) who cannot understand how her sibling can get into so much trouble.

Featured Feline: The family owns a long haired orange tabby cat named Picky-Picky. A running joke is how the father constantly calls the cat by the wrong name, although this is just a game he plays.

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller under dad's feet

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller on window seat

Picky-Picky is a close companion of Ramona, sharing many scenes with her.

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller being carried by Ramona Joey King

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller being held on stairs by Ramona Joey King

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller in basket behind Ramona Joey King

Especially cute is when Picky-Picky and Ramona are looking out the window at the construction workers who are there to build an addition to the house. The men laugh to see the cat with Ramona’s hands.

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller looking out of window with Ramona Joey King and Beezus Selena Gomez

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller looking out window with Ramona's hands

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller looking out of window with Ramona Joey King hands animated gif

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller looking out window with Ramona Joey King

Ramona opens up to Picky-Picky about the family’s financial difficulties while sitting in the dry bathtub, assuring the cat she plans to help and is able to do so. She begins by apologizing for things she has done to him, including pulling his tail when she was little, trying to teach him to play catch, and dressing him up as an astronaut.

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller looking at Ramona Joey King

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller sitting in dry bathtub with Ramona Joey King

Most of the time Picky-Picky is seen in small roles in various scenes, such as watching while Ramona and Mr. Quimby draw the longest picture in the world. Or when being there for Ramona to cuddle with the first night in her new room. Or when Mr. Quimby has to shoo him from the sofa bed after a fight with Mrs. Quimby.

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller lying on kitchen floor

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller being held by tiny Ramona Joey King with Quimby family in doorway

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller lying on bed with Beezus Selena Gomez

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller lying on bed with Beezus and being petted by Ramona Joey King

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller lying on bed with Ramona Joey King

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller being hugged by Ramona Joey King in bed

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller in background behind Ramona Joey King and her father John Corbett

Ramona and Beezus - long-haired orange tabby cat Picky Picky Miller being shooed off bed by Mr. Quimby John Corbett

Kitty Carnage Warning: Surprisingly for a children’s film, Ramona goes into the basement to feed Picky-Picky and finds he has died of old age. She tells Beezus but they don’t want to burden their parents any more than necessary so they handle the burial and funeral themselves. It is a very touching scene. The basis for the funeral scene comes from the original Beverly Cleary book titled Ramona Forever in which the girls find Picky-Picky dead in the basement and handle the burial themselves.

Ramona and Beezus - Picky Picky's gravestone

Picky-Picky was played by cat actor Miller. The animal coordinator on the film was Dana Dube of Animal Insight for Film and TV Inc. with animal trainer Cherie L. Smid.