Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Moderate
- Complexity
- Simple
- Violence
- Mild
- witty
- playful
- irreverent
- family movie night
- lazy weekend
What critics said
Critics generally found the talking-animal spy concept imaginative and the effects appealing, but felt that weak character development and uneven, frantic humor limited the film.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The cats and dogs operate secret organizations, deploy agents, conduct missions, and wage a hidden espionage conflict beneath ordinary human life.
Lou, Butch, Mr. Tinkles, and other pets communicate, fight, and execute elaborate plans alongside live-action human characters.
Lou struggles to succeed as a secret agent while forming a meaningful bond with Scotty Brody, the boy who adopts him.
The everyday rivalry between cats and dogs is exaggerated into an international-style secret war involving a plan to make all humans allergic to dogs.
Films like Cats & Dogs, and why
The Secret Life of Pets
shared talking-animal premise, family-friendly action comedy, and secret-agent spoofing
Babe: Pig in the City
shared child-centered adventure, animal protagonists, playful fantasy, and broad comedy
Spy Kids
shared live-action and digital-effects blend, juvenile humor, animal-led espionage, and comic villains
Underdog
shared family action-comedy tone, talking animals, and an exaggerated struggle between rival factions
Movie Details
- Director
- Lawrence Guterman
- Release Date
- 2001-07-04
- Runtime
- 87 min
- Rating
- 5.4 / 10 (1807)
Cast
- Jeff Goldblum
- Elizabeth Perkins
- Alexander Pollock
- Miriam Margolyes
- Tobey Maguire
- Alec Baldwin
- Sean Hayes
- Susan Sarandon
- Joe Pantoliano
- Michael Clarke Duncan
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Howdy Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Cats & Dogs about?
- A newly adopted beagle is recruited into a covert canine agency to stop an ambitious cat from turning a pet rivalry into a bid for world domination.
- What is Cats & Dogs like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Cats & Dogs as brisk, its intensity as moderate and its storytelling as simple.
- Is Cats & Dogs violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Cats & Dogs as mild.
- What did critics think of Cats & Dogs?
- Critics generally found the talking-animal spy concept imaginative and the effects appealing, but felt that weak character development and uneven, frantic humor limited the film.
- Which films are like Cats & Dogs?
- Films with a similar feel include The Secret Life of Pets, Babe: Pig in the City, Spy Kids, and Underdog.
- How long is Cats & Dogs?
- Cats & Dogs runs 87 minutes.
- Where can I watch Cats & Dogs?
- In United States, Cats & Dogs streams on Howdy Amazon Channel.
