The Amazing Maurice (now on Hulu) derives from British fantasy author Terry Pratchett’s novel, The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, ostensibly about a talking cat and his legion of talking rats. More accurately, it’s about RAMPANT SENTIENCE, because not all animals in this reality are capable of speech and self-awareness like this batch. In fact, said animals yearn to live in a world where all animals speak and also live in harmony with humans, which is just the tip of the iceberg of this movie’s sentience, because it’s very aware of itself and – in a departure from Pratchett’s text – isn’t afraid to comment on itself either. And therefore this animated adventure bulldozes the fourth wall with great frequency, which can be funny – but only if it’s done right.
THE AMAZING MAURICE: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?
The Gist: We open with a bit from a storybook about a talking rabbit and his talking pals, then pull back to Malicia (Emilia Clarke), who had been reading said book, and explains in direct address to the camera how it’s a “framing device,” then details the role of a framing device within stories just like this. I took offense at this, since that’s my job, explaining framing devices and whatnot, and here I am, being “clever” and annoying by writing a self-aware movie review that comments on itself and what it’s doing. We then shift to a town that I’ll call Dupesville. It’s overrun with rats, but wouldn’t you know it, a talking cat named Maurice (Hugh Laurie) arrives just in time to give a Music Man/Ogdenville-has-a-monorail spiel: Pay up, and the pied piper will arrive to disperse the vermin. Clink clink clink go the coins and here comes Keith (Himesh Patel) with his flute and the rats march behind him, goodbye. Anybody else smell fish in this scenario?
Of course, it’s a scam. Maurice, Keith and all the rats, who also can talk, are in cahoots. And it’s a scam within a scam, because all cats in movies are devious and conniving and aren’t to be trusted – Maurice told the rats they’re saving money to go to a magic island where all the animals talk and they live in harmony, etc., which is a lie, the scenario borrowed from the storybook Malicia shared with us at the beginning, a complication to this movie that seems unnecessary, especially because it’s slightly more tiresome than funny. Anyway, there’s a halfway-decent explanation as to why they can talk and other cats and rats can’t, but I won’t get into that. I will say upon achieving sentience, the rats gave themselves funny names like Sardines, Peaches and Darktan, because they didn’t know any better. I like how one of them is named Dangerous Beans, which is an indicator that Terry Pratchett wrote the source material if there ever was one.
The plot kicks into gear when they reach the town of (looks it up to make sure I heard right) Bad Blintz. This is where Malicia lives; she’s the mayor’s daughter. Something weird is going on here – there’s no food, no rats, not many people out in public and two creepy dudes milling about. Those guys are ratcatchers (nods quietly in the general direction of Crispin Glover), minions of an even creepier character they call Boss Man (David Thewlis). Our rat protagonists find traces of their kindred, but no actual rats; meanwhile, Maurice, Keith and Sardines (Joe Sugg) meet Malicia and together begin investigating the famine. Malicia likes to deconstruct the narrative as they go along, pointing out foreshadowing and how a secret passage should open up when you lean on a coat hook, things like that. She’s very well read and knows all the literary devices when she sees them. Does she realize that the Boss Man is most likely the source of all the trouble around here? No, because she apparently hasn’t learned about third-person omniscient yet.
What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Let’s see… The Music Man, Ratatouille, The Secret of Nimh and The Tale of Despereaux come to mind, but tonally Maurice is much more in the vein of Shrek or Puss in Boots.
Performance Worth Watching Hearing: Thewlis’ villainous hiss is instantly recognizable, invoking his unforgettably vile performance in the third season of Fargo. That’s a compliment.
Memorable Dialogue: Maurice pokes holes in Malicia’s running meta-commentary: “The world doesn’t have a plot. Things just happen one after another.”
Sex and Skin: None.
Our Take: Malicia knows exactly how this type of story goes, and somewhat unfortunately, so do you. Maurice was adapted by Terry Rossio, one of the scripters of the original Shrek, and qualities of that postmodern fairy tale spoof are abundant here, rendered tepid by the ravages of age and the familiarities of formula. I assert that fourth walls should only be broken with careful deliberation; here, it’s busted with thoughtless and wearisome frequency. It drives me bats that Malicia is never so self-aware that she’s aware of her self-awareness, which would be a level of ludicrous overcomplication I can get behind. She should openly define the fourth wall, then smash it and erect a fifth, or sixth. A seventh wall, maybe. Or what the hell, go for an eighth or ninth! Blow our minds!
Alas, the film is content to deliver some haphazard plotting and some nice, but uneventful animation to look at. (The budget seems modest in comparison to a higher-profile CG-cartoon feature.) To be fair, I enjoyed the company of Maurice, because he’s a cat and cats are great and have more personality than dogs, and some of the rats are amusing, if begging for stronger characterization. And it isn’t bereft of subtext – I’ll remain vague to refrain from spoilers, but it pits the dangers of collectivist cults versus the dangers of rugged individualism. Specifically, the rugged individualism of Maurice, who’s forced to stop being selfish, which is a really big ask for a cat. But the movie’s too busy distracting us with easy, dashed-off meta-commentary like “This is your arc!” than allowing us to get to know these people and animals, what makes them tick, what they think about all this sentience. That would be a far more fascinating narrative path to take, and one ripe for fresher comedy. The movie has its charms that younger, less-critical audiences might find appealing, but for the rest of us? Anthropomorphism is a literary device that may have worn out its welcome by now.
Our Call: I’m convinced that Maurice is amazing, but less so for the movie he’s in. Here’s a mild SKIP IT – and a reminder that Puss in Boots: The Last Wish is an absolute delight that you should watch instead.
John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
