- Japanese: リリー・C.A.T., Hepburn: Rirī C.A.T
- Written and Directed by Hisayuki Toriumi
- September 1, 1987
Voice Cast
- Jiro Takagi-Bob Bergen
- Nancy Strauch-Julie Maddalena
- Captain Mike Hamilton-Mike Reynolds
- Dick Berry-Gregory Snegoff
- Farrah Van Dorothy-J.C. Henning
- Dülar Delcassé-Steve Kramer
- Gott Walt Coup-Richard Cansino
- Guy Alcuin-Russel Case
- Wat Tyler-Kerrigan Mahan
- Morgan W. Scott-Steve Bulen
- Carolyn-Iona Morris
- Dr. Harris Mead-Clifton Wells
- Jimmy Mengel-Michael Sorich
- Syncam Personnel Manager-Tom Wyner
The crew of a corporate-owned space vessel must stop a dangerous shape-shifting organism after it gets on board. Sounds very familiar.
Lily C.A.T. is one of numerous Alien and The Thing ripoffs that have been offered up over the years. What makes it stand out amongst those other grifters is that it is an animated film. While it does mix both classics, it tries to stand apart from them. It is one of the better efforts with the philosophical one would expect with Japanese animation aiding in that. In perhaps a bit of prescience for the present it dips its toes narratively in the theme (intended or not) of human obsolescence.
It is an extreme mix of great ideas (used poorly if at all), excellent animated body horror, and generally great animation. The visual style is grounded in the era but still does a great job of emulating its inspirations in a manner that perhaps should have caused those making this fear a lawsuit. One of the more visually upsetting things here was the robot cat with its face hanging off. The animators did a very disturbing job. Given the detail there and in other scenes you can find plenty to view as ‘gross’.
One intriguing idea is of ‘time jumpers’ which are criminals that sneak onto sleeper ships to go on a trip that is so long no witnesses will be left alive once they get back. The idea of using cryogenic sleep to escape justice is a fantastic concept. This might be the first time I’ve ever seen it brought yet it’s not used that much at all. That plotline segues into a guy who stays with his principles even though he’s doomed and rehabs the supposed criminal into a heroic figure.
What was hinted at in Alien and it’s a rip offs is perhaps more deeply explored here with the conceit of characters who have taken careers on these sleeper ships becoming insanely old while not looking it because of the nature of what they do. I like how it somewhat explores the personal impact of the job and that it can become a bit of a trap. It directly says a person will not be able to start their life again. Eventually everyone and everything they know will be completely gone as they become a relic of the past. Much like the time jumpers it is treated more as a fact of this world over being a necessity of the story.
Stylized and improbable looking characters are nothing new to animation, but Captain Mike Hamilton is perhaps the most severe I have ever seen. He looks like Wolverine but sounds like Abraham Lincoln. Having perused the internet I have found this is not a unique view among those who have watched. Rather than being a voice of reason, Captain Mike is just dispassionate observer of everything. People are dying and being transformed as he borders on uninterested.
Then there is the African-American character Guy Alcuin who honestly completely disappeared from the whole thing. That might be a bit harsh. He’s one of the people that dies, but he is perhaps the most racist looking of the characters. Guy is styled like something straight out of pre-Civil Rights pop art.
While the character designs are distinctly anime of the time, the background designs are clearly inspired by Alien with a healthy mix of generic science fiction. The darkened hallways and corridors where events happen and the lighted areas where characters would logically congregate are nearly a one-to-one translation. Once we get into the dark corridors Lily C.A.T. gets very claustrophobic and menacing. It learned the lessons well for what it’s ripping off. This may be a bit on the visually tame side in comparison to its source, but that doesn’t mean it shirks too much in its ability to unnerve the audience
In a movie where everyone (at least on a superficial level provides something for the mission) the blonde girl Nancy Strauch doesn’t. She’s just there for the ride. That is not hyperbole. Nancy is the daughter of the company president. What’s worse are her extremely shallow motivations for the trip. Her boyfriend broke up with her and apparently married someone. Her revenge? Take a decades long round trip to come back still young and hot and rub his face in it. It makes the worst female film character from the ‘50s look progressive.
You may get overwhelmed by the stupidity of her reasons (I know I certainly did) but it does serve as a way to get the titular ‘cat’ on the ship. Nancy just should have been a member of the crew though if she had been, it would’ve made her essentially a watered down Ripley and I guess that was a step too far for the people. What it misses is that her own father was willing to sacrifice her to get this organization. Nobody ever contemplates the obvious there.
Like the numerous ideas, the sizeable collection of characters is underused as well. At around 70 minutes there is not nearly enough time to handle everyone and everything. Lily C.A.T. packs in a lot to give it substance but wastes most of it. To its credit, the film keeps running and while it may slow, never stops.
There are things that just stop you dead in your tracks and not positively. Our hero Jiro Takagi after all the death and destruction gets philosophical on butterflies. After most everybody is dead from being trapped on the ship, Captain Hamilton reveals he has an old shuttle onboard that he keeps as a bit of a memento. You didn’t bring it up sooner? Seems like something you should’ve mentioned. That and more causes a bit of a glitch in your brain.
Lily C.A.T. has as much working for it as it has working against it. While I am a little conflicted, I did enjoy it and will probably watch it again. The bad and the good balances out.
