**POSSIBLE SPOILERS**
Francis (Ulrich Tukur) is a cat whose owner (the cats in the film refer to
humans as “can openers”) Gustav (Manfred
Steffen) has just moved to a new neighborhood. Discovering a dead cat in his backyard,
Francis joins up with local curmudgeon Blaubart (Mario Adorf) to unveil the killer and expose the truth behind it
all.
Martin Schaack’s Felidae
is an animated film (in case the fact that its main characters are felines
didn’t tip you off, though I guess this could also have been something along
the lines of Look Who’s Talking Now) based
on a series of novels by Akif Pirincci (I
surmise this film is adapted from the first book), and without giving too much
away, I’m rather surprised it hasn’t been seen by more people or been talked
about more than it has. This film could
easily stand shoulder to shoulder with the dynamic duo of mature-themed
cartoons, Watership Down and The Plague Dogs (or frankly any others
you would care to name). If you’re a parent, I’m not sure this is
something you should show the kids just yet, however (though I’m positive there
are folks who threw it on for the kids assuming all cartoons are kiddie fare,
and besides, if you’re reading this, I’m going to also assume you’re the sort
who knows a bit about what you and your family watch before you watch it). There is graphic violence, including
beheadings and disembowelings. There are
cats having sex. There are (perhaps the
most disturbing element) scenes of live cats being brutally experimented on by
Professor Preterius (the name a clear [and fitting] callback to The Bride of Frankenstein and portrayed here
by Gerhard Garbers). So, if these are things you’re uncomfortable
watching, you will want to pick something else for family movie night (or your
own personal viewing, for that matter).
Nevertheless, the adult
components of the film are essential to the story, and I think had the choice
been made to not depict these things in this manner, it would have done a
disservice to the film’s themes.
Naturally, when you pair felines up with murder, the first thought in
most people’s heads is “curiosity killed the cat,” and that certainly holds
true in Felidae. Francis is an innately inquisitive character,
and he knows a thing or two about what makes cats (and people) tick. This is summed up nicely in the opening
moments when Francis comments that Gustav is a student of archaeology who makes
his money writing trashy novels and moves frequently when the creative well
runs dry. But Francis knows this is
little more than an excuse Gustav gives rather than dealing with his problems
head on. Francis also detects odors coming
from upstairs that immediately set him on edge, but we also know there is no
way he will resist the temptation to explore further, as with the killings. This self-awareness is depicted and
foreshadowed in Francis’ dreams. In the
first one, Francis is attracted to a door filled with pure white light (read:
truth). But inside the door, he
encounters a faceless doctor (guess who?) who gifts him with a diamond-studded
collar that transforms into a choking shackle and set of chains that drag him
down to Hell.
More alarming (yet equally in
line with the above, and you can thank me later for not using the term “shocking”),
is our introduction to the cult of Claudandus (a fabled cat martyr/god; the
name being Latin for “he who must be concealed, locked away”), whom we are
introduced to during one of their meetings.
The flock, lead by Joker (Ulrich
Wildgruber), fling themselves into an apparatus which violently
electrocutes them. Whether they are
killed or just stunned by this action, I’m not fully sure, because killing
one’s congregation is not a great way to keep it, but the cats who go through
this masochism are not shown moving (or breathing) afterward. We know that when a religious leader is shown
spewing fire and brimstone in a film, he/she is typically either crazy, false,
or both. The cats that are in the cult
are curious about Claudandus, about religion, and this will get them knowingly
hurt and very likely unknowingly killed.
The religious facet ties into the entirety of the film, not simply as a
group of misguided cats being manipulated by forces higher up, but as the
embodiment of the power of ideology/theology itself.
Sexuality ties in strongly with
both of these elements, too. The whole
idea of being in heat, of rutting with whoever is available and in proximity,
is important to the film’s plot. The
cats being killed have not been neutered.
On the one hand, this plays into the idea of curiosity, since these cats
cannot help but screw when the first opportunity arises with other cats about
which they know nothing. The very fact
they do this places them in danger (for a couple of reasons). On the other hand, there is the notion of the
religious right’s classic condemnation of unchecked sexuality. Taking out of the equation the idea of what
constitutes cat morality (we already know cats have an idea of Hell from
Francis’ nightmares) or fidelity, the violation of this theological edict
conceivably damns a given cat’s soul. In
Felidae, casual sex can lead to
physical and spiritual destruction.
Even if none of my
quasi/pseudo-intellectualizing draws you to this movie (and there are other
things going on which may; I just don’t want to give away the store, as it
were), the film is structured and told in a visually interesting fashion. Most shots not involving closeups on cats are
framed with Dutch angles. It’s fairly
rare to see perpendicular or parallel lines in much of the film’s compositions,
and much of the scenery appears twisted in some aspect of another. Bright lights are also a rarity, lending the
movie some verisimilitude and reinforcing its dark underpinnings. There are also a lot of bird’s eye view
perspective shots (an indication of a deity observing and judging the
characters as well as a reference to the characteristic of felines to sit up
high on furniture/appurtenances looking down on the world around them). Further, the film has the distinct flavor of
a hardboiled detective novel. A
character is presented with a crime and feels compelled to discover the
criminals. Secondary characters appear
to both menace the main character and throw him off the trail (most notably the
marvelously designed Kong [Wolfgang Hess],
who reminded me of the feline version of Chuck
Jones’ Marc Antony character). Others
provide clues, the doling out of which places them in immediate danger. The protagonist alone can follow the
convolutions of what’s going on, the only one beside the antagonist who can put
the pieces together in the proper order.
And ultimately, this protagonist is the only one who can confront the
antagonist with the truth, though the answers will likely bring a bittersweet
resolution. Slightly lighter in tone
than the aforementioned anthropomorphized animations, Felidae still packs one hell of a satisfying wallop.
MVT: The basis for the
narrative is intriguing and chilling, and I feel that it strengthens even after
the main mystery is solved. In other
words, it’s not a one-trick pony, and it will reward on future viewings.
Make or Break: When the
Claudandus cult makes its eyebrow-raising entrance, you instantly know there is
much more going on in this film than might be expected.
Score: 7.5/10
