Opened: December 21, 2022

Directed by: Joel Crawford

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Salma Hayek, Harvey Guillén, Florence Pugh, Olivia Colman, Ray Winstone, Samson Kayo, John Mulaney, Wagner Moura, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Anthony Mendez, Kevin McCann, Bernardo De Paula, Betsy Sodaro, Artemis Pebdani, Conrad Vernon & Cody Cameron

Though we haven’t seen a new film from the Shrek franchise in over a decade, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish reinvigorates the fairy tale featuring everyone’s favorite sword-fighting cat.

When told that he is on the last of his nine lives, Puss in Boots (Antonio Banderas) succumbs to a safe and quiet life. However, the appearance of Goldilocks (Florence Pugh) and Kitty Softpaws (Salma Hayek) in search of a map for the Last Wishing Star gives Puss the idea to find it and wish for his lives back.

This easily rates amongst the top three Shrek films. The animation is different, giving a more comic book/fairytale story look. The adventure is high stakes with some amazing new characters to invest in. And, the villain is terrifying at every turn.

Final say: Couldn’t have wished for better. ★★★★★