feelsalike.com

Movies that feel like The Cat Returns (2002)

If you loved The Cat Returns, the closest films we have are Steven Universe: The Movie (2019), The Secret of NIMH (1982) and Brave (2012). All three share The Cat Returns's epic and dreamlike feel, which is what we rank on before quality. 10 of the 12 picks below are included with a subscription right now on Hulu, Disney Plus and fuboTV and others, checked against today's data.

Young Haru rescues a cat from being run over, but soon learns it's no ordinary feline; it happens to be the Prince of the Cats.

πŸ… 88% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 7.1 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Hiroyuki Moritaepicdreamlikewhimsicalcontemplativewarmcozy
Stream it:HBO Max β†—

When is The Cat Returns streaming? β†’

If The Cat Returns hit the spot, these will too

Looking for the series itself? Also in this series: Batman Returns (1992) Β· The Mummy Returns (2001) Β· Superman Returns (2006)

Steven Universe: The Movie poster
Steven Universe: The Movie
2019 Β· dir. Rebecca Sugar
πŸ… 100%β˜… 7.7animation Β· family Β· adventure

Epic and dreamlike in the same breath

The difference: Plays it as tv movie more than The Cat Returns does

Two years after bringing peace to the galaxy, Steven Universe sees his past come back to haunt him in the form of a deranged Gem who wants to destroy the Earth.

Feels alike?
The Secret of NIMH poster
The Secret of NIMH
1982 Β· dir. Don Bluth
πŸ… 93%β˜… 7.5adventure Β· animation Β· drama

Crow sits at the heart of each

The difference: 20 years apart, and the 1980s show

A widowed field mouse must move her family -- including an ailing son -- to escape a farmer's plow. Aided by a crow and a pack of superintelligent, escaped lab rats, the brave mother struggles to transplant her home to firmer ground.

Feels alike?
Brave poster
Brave
2012 Β· dir. Brenda Chapman
πŸ… 78%β˜… 7.1adventure Β· animation Β· family

Whimsical where it counts, warm underneath

The difference: Missing the stillness of The Cat Returns

In the mystical Scottish Highlands, Merida is the princess of a kingdom ruled by King Fergus and Queen Elinor. An unruly daughter and an accomplished archer, Merida one day defies a sacred custom of the land and inadvertently brings turmoil to the kingdom. In an attempt to set things right, Merida seeks out an eccentric old Wise Woman and is granted an ill-fated wish. Also figuring into Merida's quest β€” and serving as comic relief β€” are the kingdom's three lords: the enormous Lord MacGuffin, the surly Lord Macintosh, and the disagreeable Lord Dingwall.

Feels alike?
The Polar Express poster
The Polar Express
2004 Β· dir. Robert Zemeckis
πŸ… 55%β˜… 6.6adventure Β· animation Β· family

Cozy adventure in both cases

The difference: Reviewed a good deal more coolly

When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

Feels alike?
Anastasia poster
Anastasia
1997 Β· dir. Gary Goldman
πŸ… 83%β˜… 7.2animation Β· family Β· fantasy

Fantasy with a pulse of scale, in both cases

Ten years after she was separated from her family, an eighteen-year-old orphan with vague memories of the past sets out to Paris in hopes of reuniting with her grandmother. She is accompanied by two con men, who intend to pass her off as the Grand Duchess Anastasia to the Dowager Empress for a reward.

Feels alike?
Frozen poster
Frozen
2013 Β· dir. Jennifer Lee
πŸ… 89%β˜… 7.4animation Β· family Β· adventure

Both trade on dream logic more than on being animation

Young princess Anna of Arendelle dreams about finding true love at her sister Elsa’s coronation. Fate takes her on a dangerous journey in an attempt to end the eternal winter that has fallen over the kingdom. She's accompanied by ice delivery man Kristoff, his reindeer Sven, and snowman Olaf. On an adventure where she will find out what friendship, courage, family, and true love really means.

Feels alike?
Cars 3 poster
Cars 3
2017 Β· dir. Brian Fee
πŸ… 70%β˜… 6.7animation Β· drama Β· family

Anthropomorphism is the engine of both

Blindsided by a new generation of blazing-fast racers, the legendary Lightning McQueen finds himself pushed to the brinkβ€”and suddenly, the champion who once ruled the track is fighting just to stay in the race. With his career hanging in the balance, McQueen must turn to an ambitious young race technician with a plan of her own, draw strength from the legacy of the late Fabulous Hudson Hornet, and risk everything on one last shot at glory.

Feels alike?
A Christmas Carol poster
A Christmas Carol
2009 Β· dir. Robert Zemeckis
πŸ… 52%β˜… 6.8animation Β· drama Β· family

Drama built on stillness, twice over

Miser Ebenezer Scrooge is awakened on Christmas Eve by spirits who reveal to him his own miserable existence, what opportunities he wasted in his youth, his current cruelties, and the dire fate that awaits him if he does not change his ways. Scrooge is faced with his own story of growing bitterness and meanness, and must decide what his own future will hold: death or redemption.

Feels alike?
How to Train Your Dragon poster
How to Train Your Dragon
2010 Β· dir. Chris Sanders
πŸ… 99%β˜… 8.1fantasy Β· adventure Β· animation

Whimsical family, and it commits to that

As the son of a Viking leader on the cusp of manhood, shy Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III faces a rite of passage: he must kill a dragon to prove his warrior mettle. But after downing a feared dragon, he realizes that he no longer wants to destroy it, and instead befriends the beast – which he names Toothless – much to the chagrin of his warrior father.

Feels alike?
The Prince of Egypt poster
The Prince of Egypt
1998 Β· dir. Simon Wells
πŸ… 79%β˜… 7.2adventure Β· animation Β· drama

Both trade on stillness more than on being adventure

The strong bond between two Royal Egyptian brothers is challenged when their chosen responsibilities set them at odds, with extraordinary consequences.

Feels alike?
James and the Giant Peach poster
James and the Giant Peach
1996 Β· dir. Henry Selick
πŸ… 91%β˜… 6.7family Β· animation Β· adventure

Both keep circling back to anthropomorphism

When the young orphan boy James spills a magic bag of crocodile tongues, he finds himself in possession of a giant peach that flies him away to strange lands.

Feels alike?
Kirikou and the Sorceress poster
Kirikou and the Sorceress
1998 Β· dir. Michel Ocelot
πŸ… 96%β˜… 7.5fantasy Β· adventure Β· animation

Fantasy built on warmth, twice over

Drawn from elements of West African folk tales, it depicts how a newborn boy, Kirikou, saves his village from the evil witch Karaba.

Feels alike?

In the mood for more epic?

all epic movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share The Cat Returns's defining feeling.