And for some reason everyone around him knows who he is and he knows who they are. It says if the man who was a writer was reincarnated into an already living cockroach.
I don't know, they don't really explain that part of the story too well. And it really doesn't need to be explained. The whole point is now he's a cockroach he still has his old writers intuition and he still wants to do poetry.
Too bad for him that he's kind of crap at it. Everything he writes sounds kind of formulaic. Interesting but formulaic all the same.
Then there's a strange obsession with an alley cat. The strange little vixen by the name of Mehitabel. She's kind of the main character of the movie. I mean the cockroach is our narrator and the one we spend the most time with but everything kind of revolves around her.
The story follows her exploits as she goes from one random street cat to another. Either looking for love, compassion or maybe even just a good time. She seems to be one of those that never wants to commit to anybody and ultimately hooks up with other cats who have the same interests as her.
She complains that she has no real roots in life. No job no family not even any real friends. The only one she kind of has a little cockroach guy. And half the time she's trying to kill him because he keeps taking her off. The Cockroach on the other hand has pretty much nothing to him. He views his life is nothing as pointless and sees himself as the absolute bottom drag of society. And given that he had already tried committing suicide and I guess actually succeeded added he would be correct. He is a bottom drag of society
That's what I like about the movie, there's no great moral at the end, no body's life is really gotten any better and things have ultimately ended the way they started.
This might be giving away a plot at the end of the story but what the heck did Mehitabel do with her kittens? Did she just leave them at the other house and decide to run off? I can see her doing that. And ultimately it might actually be better for the kittens if she did. She is most definitely not a good mother.
Also found it funny that there's more than just one breed of cat in her litter.
The musical numbers aren't anything to write home about. The film was originally based off some play I was unaware of. And I would assume that the music in this film is the same music that comes from those plays. The only problem is that sometimes plays don't transfer over to movies all that well. Especially when you're making a cartoon. There's this strange disconnect between everything. The animation is cheap but colourful and oddly fluent it points. And then you have them talking with a dialogue that's designed for a stage play. And where everyone's just kind of sitting around the same spot with minimal interaction.
And then there's the musical numbers that just slow the plot down to a grinding halt. There's one song that has to do with revolutionary imagery and paying homage to various popular art styles of the time. And there's another song that has to do with ladybugs and none of them had anything to do with the main plot. They're okay little scenes in their own right but I just wish they had something to do with the actual story.
It's fascinating that this film is only 4 years younger than The Flintstones movie that came out in 66. They feel as if they're in two different worlds at two entirely different times. Now The Flintstones was always paying a kind of omage to the mid 50s sitcoms that were popular for a time. While this film is more of a modern-day contemporary look at life in some dingy area of New York. Despite the fact that it's based off of a 1920s short story.
At first I hadn't thought of bringing up the Flintstones comparison. Because I made the assumption that this movie was aimed at an entirely different audience. Just looking at the cover and not reading anything into it I was thinking of a Fritz the Cat kind of movie. Something with some swearing, sexual humour and overall more adults themed.
With the exception of the swearing everything else is still there. The themes of the movie are more adult in nature, and the sexual aspect though played down it still there.
They don't shy away from any of it, they just don't get explicit with it either. Which means this film technically a G rating* and can be watched by anybody.
Best part of the movie would be the interactions between Mehitabel and Archy. They both admire one another while simultaneously are able to point out each other's flaws. There those two kinds of people that you would think would be able to make a couple but ultimately would never work out.
and their relationship is never truly resolved. Heck you don't even really want it to be. Mehitabel comes back at the end of the film after throwing Archie out because she's become part of the upper-class world as being a domesticated house cat. And then when she comes back she doesn't immediately jump into Archie's arms (which couldn't be done cuz he's a cockroach). No, she just runs back and jumps into the arms of all the other Alley Cats who are there. She's going back to what she was and Archie isn't even upset at this point.
And he really shouldn't be. His actions are the reason for her bad luck to begin with. If it wasn't for him she wouldn't have gotten pregnant with one of the random Alley Cats, she wouldn't have moved into a house where she didn't truly belong. And she wouldn't be having a sense of self guilt that became associated with her once she moved into upper class living.
Archie comes to realise that his well-meaning intentions may not be the best outcome for the person he admires. Just because he believes her life should be improved by these actions doesn't mean anyone else would. And ultimately he learns that he just kind of has to let some things be.
And besides which if we really delve into it Archie, He kind of a nut ball. Upon one of his many rejections from her he decides to call it quits. At one point wishing for suicide (again) At another Point he becomes so disgruntled that he wants to start a revolution and even convince is thousands among thousands of bugs to follow in his path. Only to throw the whole thing out the window when he thinks theres is chance to reconnect with Mehitabel again.
He's another jerk really. He thinks he's above all the other Alley Cats who are just looking for some simple fun stating that he has integrity and her best interest at heart. Only to discover that he's as problematic as the rest. Possibly even more so as he's seen as manipulative.
Although as a positive to Archie he does recognise his problems later on and he kind of tries to rectify himself. In his case just by not getting another people's ways anymore. By just letting some things be and accepting that; Yes, he is a cockroach and that he may just have to accept certain problems in his life and try to move on regardless.
I always have more respect for films like this. They can delve into the more mature world and deal with real life subject matter without resorting to just flat-out adult crude humour that would give it a more harsh rating. It takes a lot more work and knowledge to pull that off.
Overall it's an interesting movie. The Animation is on the cheaper side but it's a variety of colours and unique settings make it interesting to watch. I'd like to give it inspiration from the story but this is just an adaptation of an already existing story. So if anything I guess it's nice to see a unique take on an already established tale.
*There's a part of me that's finds that kind of weird. Some old part of my brain that still compute sex with something that children should have no connection with. Which I find incredibly hypocritical given that it's a natural function of the human body. And it's not like we keep them safe for anything else. Will let them see every bit of violence they can possibly imagine. They can see other conflicts like personal dramas, they can even watch people treat each other like miserable piece of garbage. But for some reason the one act of sexuality is just beyond the child's comprehension.
RUMINATIONS:
I just realized that the little cockroach character kind of looks like Jiminy Cricket from that one Disney movie. Maybe this whole thing supposed to be a play on that. And instead of being the voice of reason he's actually the voice of irrationality.
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