Interesteg What makes it different from others?

FuzzyTagz If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

Twilightfa Watch something else. There are very few redeeming qualities to this film.

TrueHello Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

SnoopyStyle James (Luke Treadaway) is a homeless addict busking on the streets of London. He is estranged from his father Jack Bowen who has a young family. After his OD, overworked social worker Val takes a chance on him and sets him up in temporary housing in a rundown apartment block. He finds a cat in his new home and names him Bob. He is befriended by animal lover Betty. Bob becomes his constant companion and his savior.It's all straight forward and heart-warming. It's not pushing that hard. The drug issue is handled gently despite the death. The cat is cute enough although I can do without the cat's POV. The only thing missing is a great catchy song. The busking songs are fine but nothing exceptional. The performances are solid. This is gentle heart-felt movie that hits the right notes.

areatw If ever there was a true story that was just destined to be turned into a movie, then this is surely it. 'A Street Cat Named Bob' is the story of the unlikely friendship between a recovering drug addict, James Bowen, and a stray ginger cat, who he named Bob. It's a heartwarming story and a film that can be enjoyed by everyone, not just cat lovers.The film deserves a lot of credit for ensuring that James' battle with addiction always remains at the forefront of what happens on screen. They could have easily got carried away with Bob the cat and neglected to include the harsh realities of James' situation, but thankfully they didn't make that mistake and the film is a lot better for it.'A Street Cat Named Bob' is the perfect feel good film, despite some depressing themes. It's the type of story that just has to be heard, and now it's been turned into a movie, even more people can enjoy this amazing friendship.

jimbo-53-186511 James Bowen (Luke Treadaway) is a homeless man who's recovering from drug addiction and, in order to try and get by, he makes his money by busking in Covent Garden. After suffering a relapse, James is given one last lifeline by his drug counsellor Val (Joanne Froggatt) whom manages to acquire him some accommodation on the proviso that he cleans up his act. However, James' rocky road to recovery begins with the most unlikely of packages in the form of a stray cat named Bob...Sometimes it is the simplest of films that are often the most effective and A Street Cat Named Bob is a good case in point. What we effectively have here is the story of a young man who has made some bad choices in life and is desperate to sort his life out and get clean. When a stray cat is introduced into his life this gives him something other than himself to focus his attention on and he basically chooses to put the cat before himself which of course makes him an endearing character - in spite of him being a recovering drug addict.The other thread to the story is James' developing friendship with Betty (Ruta Gedmintas) which basically gives James an insight into what a normal existence could be like; one gets the impression that he probably hadn't had too many healthy influences in his life for quite some time up till this point. The friendship played out between Gedmintas and Treadaway is sweet and the pair have a wonderful, easy-going chemistry about them.One of the main standout points in this film is Luke Treadaway who takes us on this emotional journey as the real life James Bowen in wonderful fashion - his commitment and dedication is evident on screen and he is never less than 100% convincing (this is made all the better when you remember that he probably spends half of the film talking to a cat).As good as this film is I think it's fair to say that it has one or two weak spots; the thread with Bowen's parents seemed to be clumsily thrown into the story without much real thought or development and I couldn't help but feel that the film wouldn't have been any different if they weren't mentioned at all? The screenplay is also a bit safe and clinical; for example in its early stages virtually every problem that Bowen encountered was able to be resolved without too many issues yet in the latter stages of the film everything seems to go wrong for him despite his best efforts to get his life on track. I can only assume that this approach has been employed to make the picture more dramatic, but it does render some aspects of the picture to be somewhat unbelievable. The same approach seems to have been adopted with Bowen dealing with his drug addiction making the narrative feel slightly uneven at times.Still this is a very good film that is funny, heart-warming, uplifting and inspirational and just goes to show that anyone can turn their life around if they have the desire to do so. In spite of some of its weaknesses, it is still a film that's brimming with both positivity and likability.

Mark Hawkins I don't know why, but for a long while I thought this film would not be my cup of tea. But I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable it was. And the main reason I liked it was because it did not focus on the negatives, sure it covered them off as drug addiction is a problem, but the film was able to show what support is out there and how friendships are never more important than when you are at your lowest. Basic premise of the film is man finds stray cat while he is living with addiction, and the cat gives him a purpose in life. Oh, and add to that the love I have for cats, and this was a good movie for me.