The film stars Glenn Close, Jeff Daniels, Joely Richardson, Joan Plowright, Hugh Laurie, Mark Williams, and John Shrapnel.

American video game designer Roger Dearly lives with his pet Dalmatian Pongo in London.

Her boss, Cruella de Vil, has a deep passion for fur, going so far as to have a taxidermist, Mr. Skinner, skin a white tiger at the London Zoo to make her into a rug for her.

Cruella is intrigued by the idea of making garments out of actual Dalmatians, and finds it amusing that it would seem as if she was wearing Anita's dog.

One winter evening, she has her henchmen, Jasper and Horace, break into their home and steal the puppies, while the couple is walking in the park with Pongo and Perdita.

With the family devastated at the loss of their puppies, Pongo uses the twilight bark to carry the message via the dogs and other animals of the United Kingdom, while Roger and Anita notify the police.

An Airedale Terrier follows Jasper and Horace to the mansion, and finds all of the puppies, who he helps escape under the duo's noses.

After several mishaps, Jasper and Horace discover nearby police looking for Cruella and hand themselves in, joining Skinner who was attacked in defense while trying to capture a puppy who had been left behind.

Writer John Hughes approached Glenn Close for the role of Cruella de Vil, but she initially turned it down.

The film's costume designer Anthony Powell, who was working with Close on the Broadway show Sunset Boulevard, then convinced her to take it.

[13] The site's critic consensus reads: "Neat performance from Glenn Close aside, 101 Dalmatians is a bland, pointless remake.

[15] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two and a half stars out of four and said, "For older viewers, 101 Dalmatians may seem closer to the artistic level of the Beethoven dog adventures than the mid-level Disney classic that inspired it.

"[16] Animal rights organizations protested the film's release, saying that Dalmatian sales shot up after the premiere, fueled by impulsive purchases of puppies by parents for their children.