Garfield: His 9 Lives (1988)

• 75%
• 1988
• Adventure
• Animation
• Comedy
• Drama
• Fantasy
• Music
• Science Fiction
• TV Movie
• Bob Scott
• Phil Roman
• Doug Frankel
• Lorenzo Music
• Thom Huge
• Gregg Berger

This sometimes funny and sometimes emotional animated retelling of the book of the same name follows the nine lives that Garfield the cat had lived throughout history, often as himself but sometimes as a completely different looking cat. The live action introductory segment "In the Beginning" follows two angels who wonder why God gave nine lives to cats of all creatures. "Cave Cat" follows Garfield as a prehistoric cat-Neanderthal, as well as the evolutionary path that led to him. In "King Cat", Garfield is the sacred pet cat of the Egyptian pharaoh. When Garfield learns in shock that if the pharaoh dies, his cats get buried with him, he tries everything he can to prevent his master's assassination. "In the Garden" follows Garfield as a cute innocent kitten who lives playing with his young mistress in her uncle's beautiful garden all day long. However, her uncle warns them never to open a mysterious chest that lies in the garden. In "Court Musician", a king demands that Handel, a local composer, writes a wonderful concerto for him. Since the king might punish him if he doesn't end up liking the piece, Handel sends his pet cat and apprentice Garfield to play it for the king. "Stunt Cat" follows Garfield as a professional stunt-cat, who doubles for famous Krazy Kat. However, one of the stunts doesn't go as planned. In "Diana's Piano", Garfield is a beautiful female cat called Diana, who enjoys resting on top of a piano while her talented young mistress Sara practices. The two make a life-long bond through music. The next segment, "Lab Animal", is the most serious and darkest segment as it follows Garfield as one of the frightened lab animals, who are about to become test subjects. Subject 19-GB, as he's called in the lab, tries to make a daring desperate escape from the facility. The next story "Garfield" focuses on his current life with Jon and Odie and shows how they all met. The final story "Space Cat" is set in the future and follows Garfield and Odie as two astronaut animals, who try to find a way to fight back and save themselves when a mad commander called Mendelson and his IHGWF (Incredibly Huge Galactic War Fleet) threaten to blow up their shuttle. After having spent all of his nine lives, Garfield, in the epilogue, finally meets God - with surprising results.