The film based on James Bowen’s memoirs arrives on the big screen but can a cat and his owner melt the hearts of critics?
The Guardian: ** “More meme than movie, this cut-price rendering of James Bowen’s bestselling memoirs sees homeless busker Luke Treadaway’s plight positioned a distant second behind the ginger tom.”
Den of Geek: **** “A Street Cat Named Bob is a soul warming experience that will leave you purring. Another British triumph.”
The Telegraph: *** “Treadaway, an Oliver award-winner for The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, gives a raw, sensitive performance as the straggly-haired Bowen.”
Variety: “It’s not the best film you’ll see this holiday season, but this soft, agreeable adaptation of the man-and-his-cat bestseller has its charms.”
Empire: ** “Treadaway’s Bowen is easy to like, Froggatt’s Val is a warm presence and it is suffused with a generosity of spirit towards the dispossessed. Yet given the elements, A Street Cat Named Bob should really hit harder.”
Evening Standard: *** “The whole thing looks cheap and James’s chirpy songs (written for Treadaway to sing) are so winsome. But I defy anyone to leave in a bad mood.”
The Big Issue: ***** “the biggest compliment we can pay Treadaway and co is that they are not entirely upstaged by the adorable presence of Street Cat Bob.”
The Hollywood News: ***** “A Street Cat Named Bob is an incredible feel-good movie, that despite its dark subject matter, makes your heart swell.”
The Upcoming: **** “Although sentimental, the movie manages nonetheless to remain earnest, with a story that inspires hope.”
The Hollywood Reporter: “along with its sympathetic portrait of the tribulations of homelessness; its plug for the pioneering publication The Big Issue, which homeless people sell around the U.K. as self-employed vendors; and its entirely right pro-cat, anti-dog philosophy.”
Time Out: *** “But it’s impossible to watch a film about a happy-ending story like James and Bob’s without a warm glow.”
The Times: *** “The ginger tom is purrfect in this soppy tale, but the humans are a harder sell.”