Milo and Otis was a popular flick int he late 80’s that starred a puppy and a kitten as the film’s main characters. They go on a series of adventures that include fording rivers, jumping off cliffs and falling into death pits. Unlike the computer animated films of today, Milo and Otis was filmed using all real animals. And I emphasize the “s” at the end of animals. Rumors have it that the filmmakers may have gone through as many as 27 tabby kittens and several pug dogs. The movie was originally created in Japan by director Masanori Hata and it wasn’t until later that it was released in the Unites Stats. Because there was no such thing as laws forbidding Animal Cruelty in Japan during the 80s the film became a huge hit without much controversy.

As you can see from this extremely poor quality YouTube video, that cat was lucky to survive. Unfortunately, many of its predecessors on the set were not so lucky. This excerpt was taken from the more censored American version; in the original the scene is extended to show the cat trying to climb up onto the rocks after falling from the cliff while getting pounded by waves.

Because of the lack of special effects technology at that time during the 1980s, there is no way these scenes can be fake.

Now I understand that times have changed and with them our views on animal cruelty, and I’m not pointing any fingers here or saying that anyone who likes the movie is an evil kitten killer (but you are). I simply find it an interesting study in the history of film making.