ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Saturday, February 15, 1997 TAG: 9702190022
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 12 EDITION: METRO
TYPE: MOVIE REVIEW
SOURCE: PAULA NECHAK SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER
``That Darn Cat!'' of 1965 was a mildly charming Disney movie that was popular because it starred Hayley Mills, the young English actress who won a following after she played twins in ``The Parent Trap'' three years earlier.
The updated version features Christina Ricci as Patti, owner of D.C. - or Darn Cat - who is stuck in Edgefield, a sleepy suburb of Boston. Patti hates the town, has no friends and wears black because ``it matches my soul.'' Her only companion is D.C. and together they're in constant rebellion against a boring existence.
Ricci has little of Hayley Mills' spunk, and this update of the family classic is pretty lifeless and dull. It's also stuck in the difficult position of not having real appeal to any particular age group. The younger kids at the preview screening were restless and older kids and teens who have grown up on ``Terminator 2'' will undoubtedly find it a slow ride.
``That Darn Cat'' features Dean Jones, who starred in several '60s Disney family films and who played the FBI agent in the original. Now he's the town's wealthiest patron, Mr. Flint.
Flint's maid has been kidnapped and D.C., while on his nightly sojourn through the town's alleys and back streets, accidentally becomes enmeshed in the mystery. After Patti discovers the only clue caught in D.C.'s collar, she defies her loving parents' house rules and helps novice FBI agent Kelso (Doug E. Doug) track D.C. down and solve the case.
It's no surprise the real star of the show is D.C. The humans don't really stand a chance in this sketchy reworking of the original plot. The pacing and tension are off, too, and the film lumbers rather than zips along, which is a surprise because the director, Bob Spiers, has been responsible for some first-rate, fast-paced British TV comedy like the ``Ab-Fab'' series and ``Fawlty Towers.''
But the real question is why Disney remade a mildly charming film that doesn't really stand up under the test of time. Updating ``That Darn Cat'' only reveals the script's weaknesses and limitations and all the modernization in the world can't improve upon the original.
That Darn Cat
A Walt Disney Pictures release playing at Salem Valley 8. 89 minutes. Rated PG for mild violence.
LENGTH: Medium: 53 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: Christina Ricci and D.C. color.by CNB