Puss in Boots: The Last Wish movie review: The purr-fect animated movie

It has been 11 years since the original movie, Puss in Boots, premiered. Needless to say, fans are very excited about the return of Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots in the upcoming sequel Puss in Boots: The Last Wish. Does the film ignite the magic from the first one? Is it another unneeded sequel? Let’s dive in.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish follows Puss in Boots, who realizes he has gone through eight of his nine lives. With only one life left, Puss sets his sights on the Last Wish, which he plans to find and restore his nine lives. The movie was co-directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado. It stars Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Harvey Guillen, Florence Pugh, and Olivia Colman.

The movie kicks off with Puss in Boots battling a villain that is threatening their city. After saving the day, Puss returns for an encore, but gets smashed by a bell. This is when Puss finds out he is dead, but he is convinced he still has plenty of lives left,  but a montage of the previous eight times he died proves otherwise.

Puss in Boots decides to throw in the towel on his career. He is picked up as a stray and renamed Pickles. However, during his time adapting to becoming a “normal” cat, bounty hunters are searching for him. They find his grave where he is listed as “apparently dead.” Goldilocks and the three bears try to hire Puss to find the Wishing Star. Puss is close, but just as he is about to make his move, an old friend arrives to challenge him for it,  Kitty Softpaws.

Harvey Guillen is the star in Puss in Boots: The Last Wish

The banter between Puss in Boots and Kitty Softpaws is genuinely hilarious. Banderas and Hayek aren’t shy about playing opposite each other, and that chemistry is something that oozes off the screen. I haven’t laughed this much during an animated movie (or any movie) in a long time.

The writing is such quick-witted and sharp that it isn’t just funny, it’s laugh-out-loud funny. On top of Banderas and Hayek, the remaining cast, including Olivia Colman, Florence Pugh, and the scene stealer Harvey Guillen as Perro, are perfect. Harvey was literally the glue that held the film together that makes everything else work as well as it did.

Overall, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is easily one of the best-animated movies of the year. It’s funny, charming, and full of some of the best comedic writing in an animated movie. An electric cast helps lead the charge. I can see this stealing the Best Animated Oscar in March.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish hits theaters on Dec. 21, 2022.