Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10313 in DVD
• Released on: 2001-12-17
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Anamorphic, Dubbed, PAL, Widescreen
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: Danish, English, Finnish, Norwegian, Swedish
• Dubbed in: German, Italian
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 94 minutes

Amazon.co.uk Review
Shrewdly concocted by codirectors Harry Elfont and Deborah Kaplan, Josie and the Pussycats is a wildly comedic update of the Archie comic book (and early 1970s cartoon show). "Oh my God, I'm a trend pimp!" cries rocker Josie McCoy (Rachel Leigh Cook) when she discovers that she and her best friends Melody (Tara Reid) and Val (Rosario Dawson)--collectively known as the Pussycats--have been recruited in a plot to brainwash America's youth into a frenzy of mindless consumerism. Unbeknown to the Pussycats, subliminal messages in their chart-topping hit "Pretend to Be Nice" are forcing kids to follow the latest prefab trends as if their lives depended on it. Josie's going to be the "Next Big Thing", and to her manager (Alan Cumming) and Megarecords mogul Fiona (Parker Posey), the other Pussycats are expendable baggage in their scheme to dictate the cool quotient of teenagers everywhere. Blatant product placements dominate virtually every colourful scene as Josie and the Pussycats gamely embraces the cultural blight it claims to criticise, but this isn't Hollywood hypocrisy. In this deliriously entertaining assault on pop-cultural flotsam, with its disposable boy-band (aptly named "Du Jour") and cross-product marketing ploys that perpetuate blind conformity among gullible teens, Elfont and Kaplan wilfully bite the hand that feeds them, and they're having loads of fun while advocating independent opinion. Cook and her pals are more honestly sexy than Britney Spears, and they make genuinely catchy music (although Cook's vocals were dubbed). It's pure fluff, but Josie and the Pussycats was conceived in such high spirits that it's hard to imagine how it could be improved. Even the obligatory end-credit outtakes are utterly irresistible. --Jeff Shannon, Amazon.com

On the DVD: Some nicely designed and colourful menus lead you to the extras. The obligatory "Behind the Scenes" is a lot more than just an extended promo with footage of the Pussycats learning their instruments and playing them live on stage. Strangely enough though, there's not one mention throughout of the characters' comic book and cartoon origins. There are a few pointless deleted scenes and the usual production notes plus the video for Josie and the Pussycats' single "Three Small Words" (good enough to play on MTV!) and two hilarious music videos from the movie's fictitious boy band DuJour. --Jon Weir

Special Features
1.85 Wide Screen
16:9 Anamorphic Wide Screen
DVD 9
German\Italian
English\German
English
Region 2
Dolby Digital 5.1 English German Italian
Dolby Digital 5.1
Featurette Backstage Pass
Music Video 3 Small Words
Dujour Music Video Backdoor Lover And Around the World
Deleted Scenes
Original Theatrical Trailer
Danish\English\Finnish\Norwegian\Swedish

Synopsis
Josie (Rachel Leigh Cook), Melody (Tara Reid), and Val (Rosario Dawson) are the Pussycats, a struggling rock band hoping for success in the fast-paced music world. Their dreams seem to be coming true when a record producer (Alan Cumming) suddenly signs them up to become the newest number one band in the country, without even listening to their music. Before they can think twice, the girls are made over, given glamorous clothing, and besieged by hordes of trend-worshipping fans, but soon Josie and the gang begin to realize that their music is part of an evil scheme run by MegaRecords executive Fiona (Parker Posey) to control the world by planting subliminal messages in the music of prepackaged, manufactured pop groups. When the Pussycats learn the truth, Fiona will do anything to keep them from getting in the way of her ultimate plan. JOSIE AND THE PUSSYCATS roars into the new millennium with a dead-on satire of the modern culture of pop music and merchandising (including the fictional group Du Jour, an hilarious parody of boy bands). Simultaneously, JOSIE presents a trio of bubbly but tough female heroes who sound as good as they look, with songs produced by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. The film is a live action interpretation of the comic book from Archie Comics that became a popular animated television series in the 1980s.

Customer Reviews

Jerkin!
Criminally overlooked at the box office on its release, this really is a no-brain comedy gem. Even if you're not familiar with the comic/cartoon from the 70s there's plenty to offer everyone here. The 3 leading ladies are excellent and there is admirable support from Parker Posey and the UK's very own Alan Cumming. The plot sees the girls being plucked from Riverdale obscurity and turned into the latest 'big thing', a plan masterminded by the US Government and Mega Records to keep the youth of America in check via subliminal messaging. Anyhow, the plot is pretty much secondary as the songs and the comedy are what steal the show. The bonus of the DVD is that it features full songs from the Pussycats and also boy band Dujour. I defy anyone to listen to 'Backdoor Lover' without a)bursting into laughter and b)having the tune stuck in your head for the next 6 months.

Punky, sexy, girlie fun :)
Don't be turned off by the fact that this film is a PG. I'm 17 and I love it! Everytime I watch this film, it makes me want to pull out my guitar and get on stage with all my friends in our own punk rock band! The music is punky, the girls are sexy, and the jokes are super funny! This film is so slick and well put together, and the boy band DuJour (featuring Seth Green) are hilarious.. "Dujour means seatbelts!"

Ride on your motorbike with dujour!
Fantastic film full of clever twists and great actors/ actresses. You will get absolutely hooked on the songs and end up buying the soundtrack like me! Also it is definetely worth buying the dvd becuase the extra features are hilarious- especcially the music videos in the plane- i laughed so much! I must have watched it so many times. All in all it is a spoof film about the idea of advertising through music. And with great music,it is bound to make you feel happy.