Film Review

Tom & Jerry (2021)

A cat and mouse develop a rivalry in New York City while both finding themselves in a luxury hotel.

Tom and Jerry have been whacking each other over the heads with frying pans since 1940, and even 88 years ago animated cat and mouse rivals were seen as passé. But they became the best version of this trope, which no other cartoon duo has ever outdone. There have been many iterations of over the decades, but the long-awaited fully animated Tom & Jerry: The Movie (1992) was a failure during Disney’s Renaissance. The characters have stuck around thanks to endless repeats and direct-to-video films, until a new series called Tom and Jerry Tales (2007–8) was produced and classic clips keep children entertained on YouTube for free. So now, in 2021, Warner Bros. are giving them a $50M showcase with a live-action/animated hybrid movie, Tom & Jerry.

Originally announced in 2009 as a live-action prequel explaining Tom and Jerry’s dislike for each other (isn’t it enough to accept cats and mice don’t get along?), the project briefly switched to being fully animated like the ’92 version, before Tim Story (Shaft) was hired…