[citation needed] Despite this, the film received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for its animation, humor, characters, voice performances, and musical numbers.
Upon joining fellow animals—Tilly the hippo, Cranston the goat, Frances the fish, and T.W the tortoise—Danny is dismayed on learning how minor his role is and tries weaseling his way into more time in the spotlight.
The next day, Danny reminds the other animals of their past aspirations by instigating a mass musical performance in an alleyway, which draws Darla's attention.
That night, Sawyer takes to heart Danny's attempts to keep the animals' dreams alive and tries catching him at the bus stop, but narrowly misses him.
After Danny convinces them not to give up on their dreams no matter what the humans have said or done, the eight animals put on a musical performance that entertains and impresses the viewers.
[7] Producers David Kirschner and Paul Gertz then decided to have dance numbers in the vein of classic musical films like Singin' in the Rain (1952).
[7] During production, management at Turner Feature Animation changed repeatedly and each head that came in attempted to take drastic revisions, including updating the setting to the 1950s rock-and-roll era.
Dindal said: "It's pretty hard to try and keep what you have finished so far, and then suddenly transition into a different period of time or introduce a different character or have a completely different ending that doesn't seem to fit the beginning you have".
A $2 instant savings coupon with the additional purchase of either Dennis the Menace (1993), Batman: Mask of the Phantasm, Richie Rich (1994), or the 25th anniversary edition of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory was also included.
The site consensus reads: "Cats Don't Dance, but they should easily entertain all-ages audiences thanks to some colorful animation, sharp humor, and a catchy soundtrack".
[citation needed] Todd McCarthy of Variety wrote: "Decked out with sharp and colorful design work, some well-drawn characters and six snappy Randy Newman tunes, this first entry from Turner Feature Animation goes down very easily but lacks a hook".
But the songs by Randy Newman are catchy, the look is bright, the spirits are high and fans of Hollywood's golden age might find it engaging".
[17] John Petrakis, reviewing for the Chicago Tribune, noted Cats Don't Dance would appeal more for adults than children, but provided a good moral lesson on prejudice.
[18] Lawrence Van Gelder of The New York Times summarized in his review: "While the animated characters, bright colors and an appealing Randy Newman score may keep the children content, Cats Don't Dance is no saccharine fantasy.
[21] Also from The Washington Post, Jane Horwitz felt children "won't get the references to old movies or stars like Bette Davis and Clark Gable.
[1] Dindal and Kirschner told the Los Angeles Times that they were both frustrated with Warner Bros. over the lack of advertising and the failed marketing campaign.
[6][23] Despite mostly positive reception, the Stinkers filed the film under the Founders Award in 1997 (which lamented the year's biggest studio disgraces), citing it as "loud, unfunny, and completely over the heads of its intended audience".