Amid critical reviews, 'Cats' is being updated with improved visual effects, reports say
The makers of "Cats" are reportedly taking action to make the polarizing big-screen musical experience a little more purr-fect.
On the movie's opening weekend, Universal notified theaters it would be sending an updated version of the film with "some improved visual effects," according to a memo obtained by The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline. USA TODAY has reached out to Universal for comment.
Director Tom Hooper told Variety at the "Cats" world premiere Dec. 16 he had finished the movie the morning before after "36 hours in a row" of final touches.
The $100 million production scratched out just $6.5 million in ticket sales on opening weekend, drawing in an 18% fresh score on Rotten Tomatoes and a C-plus CinemaScore from audiences.
"Cats" was the source for many tweets over the weekend, with social media users cheekily commenting on everything from the movie's eccentric plot lines to its strangely sexual undertones.
Some viewers wondered why the cats, played by big stars in motion-capture suits later digitally altered to look like they had real cat fur, still had human hands. One viral photo showed a cat-ified Judi Dench performing with what appeared to be her own wedding ring.
USA TODAY movie critic Brian Truitt remarked in his review the visual effects weren't as "consistently good" as the movie's showtunes.
"Actors dressing up in cat costumes has been fine for a musical-theater phenomenon going on nearly 40 years, which honestly would have been fine for the big-screen version, too," he wrote. "The technology is there so they use it, and the good news is that details like characters’ ears especially get a boost with some CGI help. But the wider shots where the kitties move in quick, random action are often distracting, and certain cat personas just never look quite right. (Idris) Elba's Macavity is fine with clothes on yet eerily bizarre as a naked cat, though the actual nightmare fuel occurs when human faces are put on tiny mice and Rockette-esque cockroaches."
Contributing: The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Cats' updated visual effects for theaters after bad reviews: Reports