I Watch Movies: Paws Of Fury: The Legend Of Hank

 

Paws Of Fury The Legend Of Hank

In a feudal Japan inhabited by cartoon cats, Ika Chu is building the perfect palace for the Shogun so that he will be appointed the Shogun’s heir. There is one blot on the view – a small town. He sends in bandits and the town samurai runs away. The villagers appeal to the Shogun who orders Ika Chu to find them a new samurai.

I was wondering why the voice actor for the Shogun was doing a Mel Brooks impression, when Ika Chu decided to appoint Hank, a dog who has illegally entered the country, and is facing execution. This then begins the first of several scenes, characters and other bits lifted directly from the classic Brooks fourth-wall breaking comedy Western, Blazing Saddles.

The Shogun is of course voiced by Mel Brooks.

Anyway the dog, Hank, has to go through several training montages, earn the trust of the townsfolk, redeem the catnip-addicted old samurai, and defeat the villain. Meanwhile all the powerful satirical comedy of Blazing Saddles is blunted, but still pretty good, and also the beans scene. The knowing nods to this being a film are annoying, including several comments on it being 85 minutes without the credits, the occasional breakthroughs to modernity in cat-feudal-Japan and general absurdity (the villain is building a giant jade toilet which features prominently in the final confrontation) are mixed.

Watch This: For entertaining a nine year old for 85 minutes and introducing them to family-friendly Blazing Saddles-lite
Don’t Watch This: Watch Blazing Saddles