Puss in Boots: The Last Wish may be the best films in recent memory.  After an entire decade, DreamWorks Animation studios finally released a new film within the Shrek Universe. And after rewatching it, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish certainly deserves the high critical acclaim and high praise that it has been receiving shortly after its release on December 21, 2023. 

The film follows the sidekick- turned- titular- character, Puss in Boots. After losing eight of his nine lives, he ventures on a journey to gain more lives in order to maintain his status as an outlaw, hero, and above all, a legend. And in order to do so, he must go on a journey to find the fabled wishing star which would be able to grant him its last (and only) wish. 

The filmmaker treat their audience with an unspoken respect and maturity, in order to fully tell the story they want to tell. By being unafraid of wanting to tell its story, this animated feature shows pictures of blood, some witty humor for both adults and children, and even discusses mature topics such as what it means to truly value the life that you have and how death is eventually inevitable.

Without going into spoilers, Puss in Boots (voiced by Antonio Banderas), Kitty Softpaws (Selma Hayek), Perrito (Harvey Guillien), Jack Horner (John Mulaney), and Goldilocks (Florence Pugh) are all main characters who truly shine in their own way. Protagonists Puss, Kitty, and Perrito and antagonists, The Wolf, Jack Horner, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears fulfill their roles to fullest potential. I even shed a few tears during the film itself because of how invested I was in the characters and their stories. So nothing but massive props to the voice actors and the animators.

The animation itself is nothing short of spectacular. Every single second of this film looks like a moving painting, where in some frames you’ll be able to see actual brush strokes made by the animators. It shows you, the viewer, how much time and effort was poured into this movie. 

What makes this Puss in Boots sequel different from the other movies within the Shrek franchise is the visuals. From the visual point of view, it looks as if every frame of the movie was painted by hand and took cues from another animated feature,  Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse (2018), where the frame rate is dropped for particular scenes to emphasize certain aspects. Additionally, the visuals of the movie use parallels to display changes that were made within the story such as multiple fights from the first battle to the last.

While some won’t go and see Puss in Boots simply because it’s animated, I can assure you that this film is an adventure with non-stop laughs, action, and a lot of heart. 

I rate this movie a solid 5/5 stars. It is truly just that good.