Tags: Alec Baldwin | Jeff Goldblum | Jon Lovitz | Miriam Margolyes | Salome Jens

The makers of this one goofed big time.

The only two groups that were possibly going to like this movie concept were small children and the subscriber base of Cat Lover magazine.

But Cats & Dogs (the Widescreen Version is best) alienates the second of these crucial groups by stupidly making cats the evil enemies of the film, which depicts a mortal, global battle of domestic petdom pitting lovable dogs against a wicked canine army.

Cats once ruled the world, the film explains, until dogs rose up in ancient Egypt to drive them out of Cairo. Since then cats have been plotting their return to power, and a certain Mr. Tinkles (!) is ready to lead them. The plot shouldn't really matter in a movie like this, as long as it delivers some good clean stupid fun.

But despite the voices of Jon Lovitz, Alec Baldwin and Jeff Goldblum - or perhaps because of them - even modest humor expectations are left buried deep in steaming week-old kitty litter.

The technology is pat - hey look! the animals are talking! - and the dialogue and "jokes" are the kind of stuff a subscriber to Cat Lover magazine would find amusing - that is, if they hadn't all stormed out of the theater once they realized that Mr. Tinkles (!) was the bad guy. Better to spend a couple hours watching old Mr. Ed tapes.

Thinky says: This stupid celluloid mutt crapped on my floor.