The Amazing Maurice is a self-aware animated film that thinks it is clever, but unfortunately falls flat on many levels.
There is something to say about an animated film that the whole family can enjoy. There are a lot of them out there, but sometimes, in trying to create something that viewers of all ages can enjoy, things fall through the cracks. Unfortunately that is what happens with The Amazing Maurice, at least for me.
This movie delivers some self-aware comments that are funny, but the majority of them are more on the cringey side. At the same time, the end result is a bit too mature and sophisticated for younger kids. All of this causes The Amazing Maurice to float in the middle of the two audiences, alienating each for one reason or another.
The best thing about this movie is that it really does have a stellar cast. Just one look at the list is enough to have people lining up to see the film. It starts Hugh Laurie, Emilia Clarke, Himesh Patel, Joe Sugg, Gemma Arterton, David Tennant, Hugh Bonneville and Ariyon Bakare. They all do a wonderful job with what they are given.
That said, Malicia (Emilia Clarke) is funny at first, but very quickly becomes insanely annoying. She talks a mile a minute and while she is an important part of the story, as she is the one who knows this is a movie and talks directly to the audience, she is hard to like. And an unlikable main character is never a good thing.
The story itself is interesting, and we really wish it had all come together better because there is a lot of potential. The Amazing Maurice takes the story of the Pied Piper, and puts a new spin on it. Maurice, the cat, teams up with speaking rats in order to con the villagers. Again, it all sounds fun on paper but unfortunately it becomes quite dull rather quickly.
The animation itself isn’t bad, per se, but it doesn’t hold a candle to the latest technology and other studios. I know, we shouldn’t compare, but it is hard not to. There are certainly some pretty shots, but I can’t help but feel like this looks like a film that was made several years ago.
Overall Thoughts
The Amazing Maurice tries too hard to be unique and clever, and ends up being… exhausting. It thinks that it knows what it is, but in trying to create a film that will work for viewers of all ages, it ends up alienating the majority of them.
Simply put, this one is not for me. I can see why some people will enjoy it, but this one was a struggle for me. There is too much happening, and being self-aware did not do it any favors. There is a good story in there somewhere, but this film is far too pretentious to let it out.
Rating: 2 out of 5
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About The Amazing Maurice
Maurice is a streetwise ginger cat who comes up with a money-making scam by befriending a group of talking rats. When Maurice and the rodents reach the stricken town of Bad Blintz, they meet a bookworm named Malicia and their little con soon goes down the drain.
The Amazing Maurice is in theaters now.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.