Josie and the Pussycats | | Cast : | Rachael Leigh Cook, Tara Reid | | Director : | Harry Elfont, Deborah Kaplan | | Studio : | Universal Studios | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, DTS Surround Sound, Widescreen | | Released Date : | April 11, 2001 | | DVD Released Date : | February 04, 2003 | | Language : | French (Dubbed), English (Dubbed), English (Original Language), French (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | August 08, 2005 | | Summary | Entertaining!! | Content
 | `Josie and the Pussycats' is one of the funniest movies that I have ever seen. With a great cast, a well written script, and good songs included, you cannot help but love this movie!
The movie starts off with the boy band DuJour (imitating BSB, who were famous during the time this movie released), who discover something awkward behind the music in their CD and are made victims of a plane crash when their manager Wyatt Frame decides to get rid of them before they find out anything more. In search of a new band, Wyatt notices Josie McCoy, Melody Valentine and Valerie Brown of the group `The Pussycats', and instantaneously makes them famous so that the company's secret mission behind the music continues. Josie and her gang promise each other that they would be friends first and a group second. However, once they become popular, Josie's attitude changes, but will she realize her mistakes and bring peace in the end?
This movie was hilarious from start to end. Rachel Leigh Cook, Rosario Dawson, and especially Tara Reid acted out their part well as the Pussycats. But the credit has to go to Alan Cumming and Parker Posey for doing such a fantastic job on their roles, and providing so much humor through the movie. Even Missi Pyle (who played Alexandra Cabot) was funny with her expressions. The storyline, even though it is senseless at times, is totally unique and kept my attention. Director Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan (who also directed the comical `Cant Hardly Wait') balanced out the comedy and romance in this movie and did a first-class job. And last but not the least, the catchy upbeat songs were a great change to listen to, and I'm sure I will be purchasing the soundtrack of this album in sometime.
Even the DVD has some behind the scenes features and an audio commentary for the movie, to entertain us for a while. All in all, `Josie and the Pussycats' will uplift your spirits if you are feeling down, and make you laugh at least once. |
| Rating | | | Date | June 20, 2005 | | Summary | Smart Bubblegum Pop | Content
| This is a movie that's much smarter than it lets on. Bubbling just below the glittery veneer of this cutesie teenybopper comedy is a much funnier, more adult film that takes joy in skewering every pop culture phenomenon from fashion to product placement, oblivious pop stars who perform whatever's put in front of them, and the culture of deeply overproduced music.
The end result is about ten times funnier and more competent than it has any right to be. Partly due to the fantastic bubblegum pop soundtrack that effortlessly translates the atmosphere of the original cartoon into a contemporary context, but also because of the awesome performances by not only Kay Hanley as Josie's voice, but also the talented duo who created the blissfully oblivious music of boy band DuJour. (Of particular note, pay attention to the singer who suddenly - and hilariously - realizes the full double meaning of the lyrics to "Backdoor Lover" about halfway through the song.)
The product placements never stop; in fact, they permate this movie, literally woven into the carpets. The cumulative effect is very amusing.
The performances are over the top, but as it's a cartoon adaptation, a little scenery chewing is understandable. Also, for the most part, fun.
It's impossible to discuss the film without including the soundtrack in the conversation; they only work to their fullest extent when enjoyed side by side. Buy both the film and the soundtrack; you'll enjoy each for totally different reasons. |
| Rating | | | Date | March 08, 2005 | | Summary | A hilarious movie!!! | Content
| I love Josie and the Pussycats. It is one of absolute favorite movies-the acting is good and the music is good too! I laugh at all the jokes and I just love it more each time I watch it. It is a hilarious movie about three girls who make it into the mainstream music arena and there are evil people who are trying to brainwash kids through Josie and the Pussycats music. It all leads to a hilarious movie and a great time. If you like movies like Zoolander and Elf, Comedies that are just plain dumb then you will love this movie. As it is the same humor. |
| Rating | | | Date | December 31, 2004 | | Summary | Funny and Quirky | Content
| If you want a good escapist movie, this is it. It's silly and funny, without much complicated issues to think about - except that Josey and the Pussycats must save the world from being brainwashed by advertisers. The parody of boy bands is hilarious, and the Pussycats - Rosario Dawson and Tara Reid are cute and sweet. A fan of quirky Parker Posey, I'm not disappointed by her steady performance as an advertising executive bent on brainwashing the world into thinking that orange is the new black. If you have a sense of humor, the silliness in this film will make you laugh. If you are looking for Oscar winning fare, then look elsewhere. |
| Rating | | | Date | December 24, 2004 | | Summary | Not exactly a masterpiece,but still an entertaining movie | Content
| For a movie that's called Josie and the Pussycats, it seems odd that it begins with a boy band. The boy band is called Dujour, and they are surrounded by screaming fans. They arrive at the airport to leave for their next gig, but they find time to perform a song (Backdoor Lover) on the tarmac. We follow them onto their plane. The film is mostly played straight, but massively tongue-in-cheek. There is more product placement than you can imagine - the inside of Dujour's plane is plastered with Target logos, for example.
Dujour is played brilliantly deadpan by actors who don't get full credit in the cast list - only Alex Martin is credited as Les. I recognised Seth Green (as Travis) but not the other two. All seems to be going well for Dujour until they happen to ask their manager Wyatt Frame (Alan Cummings, very sinister in tinted glasses) about a background track on their latest single. He disclaims all knowledge, but immediately leaves the plane with the pilot (in midair, by parachute). On landing, Wyatt makes a phone call: "Looks like we need a new band". He has landed just outside Riverdale, where The Pussycats live. Gosh, what a coincidence!
We meet The Pussycats playing in a bowling alley. The lead singer and guitarist is Josie (Rachel Leigh Cook, with red hair for a change); the bass guitarist is Val (Rosario Dawson); the drummer is Melody (Tara Reid). Wyatt runs into The Pussycats (almost literally) - Paradise by the Dashboard Light is playing, I think it should have been Band on the Run - and signs them to Mega Records.
Perhaps the only real flaw in this movie is the way that it tries so very hard to be arch. (Horrible thought: I wonder if they did that deliberately, given that the characters come from the Archie comics? Nah - that's too subtle for an American film) Most of the time it comes off well, but there are exceptions... Perhaps the weakest part is Fiona (Parker Posey) - the CEO of Mega Records - she tries hard, but fails; maybe another actress could have pulled it off, or maybe they needed a different scriptwriter.
Josie and the Pussycats make a record, and we see it climb the charts - interestingly, we see four top 40 charts, but Josie comments that all this happened in a week (should someone tell them that the top 40 only comes out once a week?). One of the many fun things you can do with your remote is read the names of the other songs on the record charts - this is a movie where freeze-framing and reading the backgrounds is rather fun.
Naturally, this being a teen movie, the teens catch on to what's going on (I'm not going to tell you the whole plot), and you can probably guess the rest...
The best advice I can give you is not to think too hard about the movie, and enjoy it.
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