Review of Fritz the Cat (1972) by Jeremy S — 12 Jun 2008

I love both Bakshi and Crumb, so I was excited to watch this in spite of the mostly unenthusiastic reviews I'd read. These are two notoriously stubborn artists trying to meld styles that are as singular as they are similar.

Short of a miracle intervening, and it didn't, this could never have worked, and it doesn't. That's not to say it isn't entertaining watching them try. There are a handful of shockingly funny moments (one in particularly involving the ignoble death of a truckload of chickens), and it's undeniably fun and novel to get to see Crumb's creations come to life.

But in the end, these two giants of their fields simply don't play well with others, and their respective visions aren't served by compromise.