A cat burglar steals a necklace and a cat puts the police on his trail in the entertaining and imaginative cartoon A Cat in Paris, an Oscar-nominated animated thriller that defies expectations and pleases on all the right levels. With a running time of only 62 minutes, it’s also an extremely quick watch.

Dino the cat leads a double life. During the day, he’s the pet of a little girl named Zoe, who hasn’t spoken since her father was killed by a notorious criminal. At night, Dino tags along with Nico, a jewelry thief who happens to be the target of a manhunt being conducted by Zoe’s mother, a policewoman.

The back cover of the Blu-ray package (which also includes a DVD copy) describes the movie as “a delightful animate adventure perfect for both adults and children – a witty and stylish ‘animated noir’ with a jazzy soundtrack… and a thrilling climax on top of Notre Dame cathedral.” The marketing team wrote my review for me, and much more eloquently, too.

A Cat in Paris walks a tightrope between being too dark for children and too light for adults, but it only teeters on a few occasions. There are moments that would be too violent for some children, but for the most part the film is breezy and fun. For adults, A Cat in Paris does play like film noir, with a fast-paced story and exciting finish.

See, I just repeated the marketing copy, but to lesser effect.

A Cat in Paris is a fun, entertaining movie that deserves to be seen by a broader audience than critics and foreign film connoisseurs.  With an English audio track featuring Marcia Gay Harden, Anjelica Huston and Matthew Modine, A Cat in Paris is a trip worth taking.

Review by Erik Samdahl unless otherwise indicated.