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Parents' Guide to

A Street Cat Named Bob

By Yvonne Condes, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 11+

Sweet memoir-based drama deals with drug addiction.

Movie NR 2016 103 minutes
A Street Cat Named Bob Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

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age 11+

Based on 4 parent reviews

Karen S.
Karen S. Parent of 10-year-old
February 23, 2023
age 10+
I loved this movie. I watched it with my 10 year old daughter who is cat-obsessed. It definitely does not sugar coat the experience of drug addiction and has several rough scenes. But I felt it was educational about the reality faced by many people and a truly heartwarming story about our connection with animals. She loved it, too.
AuroratheBorealisCat101
AuroratheBorealisCat101 Adult
May 16, 2022
age 13+

Pretty Decent, Not the Best But Still Good

This is a pretty heartfelt true story of how one man who's life was saved by a gorgeous orange cat. In my opinion, its a good film. One thing I think parents should be aware of before showing their child this is it's intense scenes, mostly consisting of its drug content and how it can effect a person. There's also scenes where the main guy is often harassed and bullied by some mean spirited jerks for zero reasons. Not to mention the scene where poor Bob the cat is chased by some of the jerks' rather vicious dogs at one point during a scene where a rude lady who tries to buy Bob off him. Some mild language is present, a few heated debates... Seems like you'd hafta view this before letting ur child see this. I'd recommend it to at least 13 and up.
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What's the Story?

In A STREET CAT NAMED BOB, James (Luke Treadaway) is an on-again, off-again heroin addict who gets the chance to turn his life around for good when he meets Bob, a stray cat he grows to love. James starts taking Bob with him when he plays guitar around London, and they become a sensation. With Bob at his side, James learns what love and responsibility really mean.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (4 ):
Kids say (10 ):

This is a sweet little film about serious issues. Treadway is believable as James, an addict who's trying to get clean. He picks food out of trash cans and sleeps on the street -- and even though he's an excellent guitar player on the streets of London, he's invisible. A Street Cat Named Bob brings up lots of issues that parents can talk about, including the hazards of homelessness and what can happen if you do drugs (one of James' friends overdoses, and James is hospitalized and finds out he has hepatitis).

The music is good, and Treadaway is a compelling actor and singer. There a few jarring scenes when the camera shoots from Bob's point of view and it almost feels like it's going to become a talking animal movie, but it stays focused on James' story. You end up rooting for him in the end and hoping that he'll stay clean.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about how A Street Cat Named Bob depicts drug use. Are the consequences realistic? Why is that important?

  • How does drug use impact those beyond the user/addict?

  • How does the movie promote compassion and humility? Why are those important character strengths?

  • Do you have pets? What do they bring to your life? Is it easy or hard to believe that having a pet could change someone's life so profoundly?

Movie Details

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