Fritz the Cat 1972

In the vibrant atmosphere of 1960s Washington Square Park, a gathering of free-spirited hippies converges to share protest songs and their message of rebellion. Among them is Fritz, a charismatic tabby cat with an insatiable appetite for adventure and romance. He’s accompanied by his feline friends, who join him in an audacious attempt to woo the fairer sex. As they serenade the passing crowd, their music is met with indifference - until a trio of alluring young women stroll into view, their attention captivated by a majestic crow perched nearby.

The girls’ condescending comments about people of color are met with a sharp rebuke from the crow, which then takes flight. Undeterred, Fritz seizes the opportunity to present himself as a tortured soul, convincing the girls that they’ll find truth and enlightenment in his company. The four of them make their way to a friend’s apartment, where a raucous party is already in full swing.

As the night wears on, the group finds themselves swept up in the revelry, with Fritz leading the charge as he invites the girls to join him in a wild romp through the bathtub. Meanwhile, two porcine NYPD officers arrive to put an end to the festivities, only to find themselves outmaneuvered by the partygoers. As the officers make their way up the stairs, one of them stumbles upon Fritz and his new companions indulging in a steamy affair.

The sudden interruption sends the group scattering, with Fritz seeking refuge in a haze of marijuana smoke. The officers, however, are undeterred, charging into the bathroom to crack down on the party. One officer begins brutalizing the revelers, prompting Fritz to make his move. In a bold display of defiance, he emerges from his stoned reverie, snatches an officer’s gun, and sends a bullet flying straight at the toilet - causing the water main to burst and sending everyone fleeing in disarray.

Chaos erupts as the officers give chase, pursuing Fritz down the street into the midst of a synagogue. As the congregation rises to celebrate America’s decision to supply more arms to Israel, Fritz seizes the opportunity to slip away unnoticed, disappearing into the crowd like a ghost.

As Fritz returns to his dormitory, he finds his roommates too engrossed in their studies to notice his arrival. Frustrated with the monotony of his life, he decides to take drastic action and sets his notes and books ablaze, igniting a fire that spreads throughout the building before engulfing the entire structure. Meanwhile, in Harlem’s vibrant nightlife, Fritz meets Duke the Crow at a pool table, where they engage in a heated game. After narrowly avoiding a confrontation with the bartender, Duke invites Fritz to “bug out” and together they commandeer a vehicle, which Fritz drives recklessly off a bridge, prompting Duke to intervene just in time to save his life by grasping onto a railing. The duo arrives at the apartment of notorious drug dealer Bertha, whose potent cannabis joints significantly heighten Fritz’s libidinal energy. As they indulge in a passionate encounter with Bertha, Fritz suddenly feels compelled to share the revolution’s message with the world. Seizing the moment, he abandons their tryst and takes to the city streets, inciting a riot that spirals out of control as the police and New York Air National Guard deploy troops to quell the unrest. The violence reaches its crescendo when 3 F-104 jets carpet bomb Harlem with devastating precision.

Fritz flees into an alleyway, where he’s found by his older fox girlfriend, Winston Schwartz, who drags him on a road trip to San Francisco. As their vehicle runs out of fuel in the desert, Fritz abandons Winston and sets off alone. He eventually crosses paths with Blue, a drug-addled rabbit biker, who’s accompanied by his horse girlfriend, Harriet. Together they head to an underground hideout, where two other revolutionaries – an enigmatic female gecko known only as “the lizard leader” and John, a hooded snake – reveal their plan to blow up a power station. When Harriet tries to persuade Blue to join her for dinner at a Chinese restaurant, he responds with violence, striking her repeatedly and chaining her down. Fritz’s attempts to intervene are met with resistance from the group, as the lizard leader throws a candle in his face, prompting Blue, John, and the lizard leader to gang-rape Harriet. Later, Fritz changes his mind about participating in the plan to blow up the power station and tries to disable the explosives, but ultimately finds himself caught in the blast’s aftermath.

As the somber atmosphere of a Los Angeles hospital hangs heavy, Harriet, masquerading as a nun, and her group of young companions from the New York park converge to pay their respects to the dying man. With hope dwindling, they assume his final moments are near, only for Fritz to suddenly experience an astonishing resurgence. As if conjuring up memories of his past conquests, he delivers the same speech that had once won over the hearts of the trio from New York, and before long, he finds himself in a spirited foursome with the girls, leaving Harriet stunned and bewildered by this unexpected turn of events. Meanwhile, as the hospital’s quiet reverie is shattered, a deputy from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department takes up station outside the room, his somber tone belying a faint glimmer of admiration for the departed individual: “Ah, poor cat… he was a tough kid, wasn’t he?” The film concludes with this poignant and understated tribute to a life lived to the fullest.