Following the success of the Oscar-nominated 2011 movie “Puss in Boots,” DreamWorks Animation in collaboration with Universal Pictures released the sequel to the hit movie titled “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish.” Directed by Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado, “Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” is a story about the titular character’s journey to find a wishing star that possesses one wish and will grant said wish to the first person to find it. At the same time, Puss in Boots is on the run from a mysterious wolf who plans to take the last of his nine lives. Joel Crawford and Januel Mercado are best known for their work on the “Kung Fu Panda” trilogy.

“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” is the sixth installment in the “Shrek” franchise. The movie takes place sometime after the 2010 movie “Shrek Forever After,” where the events of a tragic incident leaves Puss in Boots down to the last of his nine lives and on the run from a mysterious hooded wolf. The protagonist embarks on a journey with the help of Perrito, an orphaned dog and Kitty Softpaws, his former lover, to find the mystical last wish so he can gain his nine lives back. The movie features a lot of thematic choices that are relatable to both kids and adults – like the importance of friendship and family, the value of life, negative themes like anxiety and the fear of dying. Throughout the movie, DreamWorks emphasizes the importance of friendship and family as illustrated through the crime family of Goldilocks and the three bears and through Puss in Boots and Perrito’s relationship as new friends. The movie also emphasizes the value of life as Puss in Boots learns that it is not about the quantity of life but the quality. The movie also addresses the fear of dying and the anxiety it can instill on a person. This is depicted in Puss in Boots’ adventure to find the wishing star which is him going through great lengths to cheat death.

In addition to the thematic choices used in the movie, DreamWorks uses the on-screen character interactions and overall characterization to make the movie relatable to its audience. Puss in Boots, voiced by Antonio Banderas, is the movie’s titular protagonist. He is a thrill seeking, courageous, anthropomorphic cat of Spanish descent. He is also described as the hero of San Ricardo, helping those in need. Kitty Softpaws, voiced by Salma Hayek, is the love interest of our protagonist and is the movie’s deuteragonist. She is an adroit tuxedo cat who is the ex-fiancée of Puss in Boots. She is a smart, cunning, cool, well-groomed, independent and persuasive cat that ultimately just wants someone she can trust. Perrito, voiced by Harvey Guillén, is the movie’s tritagonist and a friend to our protagonist and deuteragonist. He is an amiable, wide-eyed, ingenuous and optimistic therapy dog. He constantly sees the very best in people and the world and his view of the world is what brings our protagonist’s internal conflict to a resolution. Mysterious Hooded Wolf, voiced by Wagner Moura is the movie’s main antagonist. He is a cunning, sinister and sarcastic individual who tries to take Puss in Boots’ last life. The movie also features other characters that add to the overall plot of the movie like ‘Big’ Jack Horner, voiced by John Mulaney, Goldilocks, voiced by Florence Pugh, and so on.

Lastly, DreamWorks utilizes a new groundbreaking animation style to capture the audience and keep them interested in the franchise. Director Joel Crawford, production designer Nate Wragg and the design team utilized hand-drawn techniques, hyper-realistic animation styles and a kaleidoscopic motion picture style to create a fairy tale movie that looked more fairy tale than movie. Although some might argue that the style distracts the viewer from the movie, in reality the style adds to it because the movie incorporates a lot of magic which the animation style makes pop.

“Puss in Boots: The Last Wish” is a movie delivered at a time the world needed it the most. Released Dec. 21, the movie features friendship, family, the value of life, anxiety and fear at a time when people are self-reflecting. The movie is a great watch for both kids and adults and I strongly suggest you go see it in theaters today.

Rating 5/5