Kudos to the cat burglar and Catwoman, who win over unlikely hearts

A Cat in Paris (2010), Jean-Loup Felicioli and Alain Gagnol

The Dark Knight Rises (2012), Christopher Nolan

 

A black cat accompanies a jewel thief on his late night escapades in A Cat in Paris. Coincidentally, this animated French feature meets its U.S. debut during the release of The Dark Knight Rises, which stars Anne Hathaway as Catwoman and jewel thief.

*But wait, as the curious 'burgh-lar, am I no longer allowed to believe in coincidence?

Consider another similarity/coincidence. Viewers of A Cat in Paris initially wonder, "Is the cat burglar a 'good guy'? He seems kind, but he's a burglar after all!" And viewers of The Dark Knight Rises might not understand their feelings towards Catwoman at first. "She's got badass moves, but does that justify stealing from Batman? She even sold his fingerprints!"

*If I believe in these coincidences, I might have to throw my pen and notebook off a bridge.

*So be it, as long as a lair awaits.

But in all seriousness...

ACiP: The cat burglar saves a girl from a gang leader who killed the girl's father a few years ago. Then the cat burglar woos the girl's mother, who, as a detective, was his opposition in the whole burglarizing-people-by-night gig, right?

tDKR: Catwoman compromises Batman's security by doing a job for an accomplice of Bane, the villain. Then Batman wins her over with his heroism, she saves his life, and they flee to Florence together. Enemies-turned-lovers, right?

At any rate, both movies are captivating in very different ways. It's thrilling to recognize Pittsburgh's own Downtown and Oakland interspersed with views of Bedfordshire, Glasgow, India, Los Angeles, New York, and Newark in The Dark Knight Rises. "They were here!" And we can't overlook that, for 2h 45m, the movie moves along stealthily, without hesitation, with brilliance in fact.

I am going out on a limb when I compare an animation with a budget of five million euros to an Imax blockbuster with a budget of 250 million dollars, but they share some basic plot elements, and they equally excite the imagination. Since far fewer people will probably see A Cat in Paris, its merit is worth describing. Radiant colors, a gentle pulse of light against shadow, and the characters' absurdly tiny feet distinguish the animation. The enticing soundtrack elevates the air of mystery as the cat burglar leaps among Paris rooftops, and playful references to movies like Reservoir Dogs and King Kong add the right dash of comedy to an animation full of thievery.

There is no competition between the two movies; I just couldn't overlook the similarities when I saw The Dark Knight Rises Friday and A Cat in Paris Saturday. Both are magnificent. The Dark Knight Rises will grip you with its suspenseful edge and make you gasp while Heinz Field explodes under Gotham City athletes. A Cat in Paris will delight you with its silly treatment of burglars, gangs, and police officials. And you'll marvel at the animated version of night vision, which enables the cat burglar to perform his wittiest trick.

*Parts of this post will be best understood if you have seen The Dark Knight Rises.