Tom and Jerry Review: The Classic Cartoon Duo Translated To The Big Screen

Release date: February 26, 2021
Running time: 101 minutes
Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, Michael Peña, Colin Jost, Pallavi Sharda
Directed By: Tim Story

Adaptation of the classic Hanna-Barbera property, which reveals how Tom and Jerry first meet and form their rivalry.

Tom and Jerry is a movie set in the "real" world with cartoon animals throughout.  It is a smart choice that lets you have recognizable actors interact with the recognizable pair.  And the movie does a good job of making them feel like part of the action.  The animated style smartly recreates the characters in a recognizable form but adjusted for 3D.  It is very impressive to see and hats off to the animators who managed to translate Tom and Jerry's mannerisms, expressions, and overall interactions in the real world.  And the real actors who accompany Tom and Jerry (and the other animated animals) feel natural.  There are no awkward interactions or uncanny valley breaking scenes, everything feels fluid and natural.  The animated animal's effects on the real world locations are also seamless, a testament to the effects team for having real world damage mirror the animated character's movements.

The story of Tom and Jerry is serviceable, providing an origin story for the pair and enough of a reason to have them fall into Kayla (Grace Moretz)'s world.  And the story also provides enough antics to keep the pair moving through the world, destroying as they go.  The film does an admirable job of trying to put a larger story on top of the episodic format of the TV show.  It allows for a more involved storyline and for some character development from this dynamic duo and some additional friends they make along the way.  And one of the most notable updates from the original cartoon is the entertaining soundtrack.  The movie has a lot of added hip hop to spice this all up and give the music a more modern flair.

But as fun as it was to see Tom and Jerry come to life in the real world, their format just didn't seem to translate well into a modern movie.  Their fighting, while fun to watch in a cartoon, one off format, seemed petty and vindictive in a longer form movie.  And it seemed to go way over the top when translated into a real world scenario.  I can't fault the movie that much because it was trying to keep the same format and style of the original cartoon, and it succeeded in that respect.  But it also felt like the overall conflict and ridiculousness of the fighting just didn't translate well into this format.  And the movie does wrap up a little too quickly and conveniently, but the movie is already relatively long for a kids movie.  But if the ultimate consumer is to be the judge, my kids really enjoyed this one.  

Tom and Jerry translates the classic cartoon for the big screen, with all the craziness, slapstick humor, and lovable fighting from this cat and mouse duo that you would expect. 

Rent it.

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following us on our various social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube.  Tom and Jerry Premieres in theaters and on HBO Max on Friday, February 26.