THE ARISTOCATS (1970)

A rich French widow and former singer, totally enamored of her cat Duchess and Duchess's three kittens, rewrites her will so her beloved cats will always be cared for, her estate otherwise going to faithful butler Edgar when they're gone.  Problems arise when Edgar gets wind of his potential windfall and spirits the cats out of the house, taking them way into the countryside and dropping them off in a basket as they sleep.  There, Duchess and her children are discovered by worldly tomcat Thomas O'Malley, who along with a slew of other animals they meet along the way helps the cats return home, even as Edgar plots to cover his tracks.  Funny, sweet, and with some truly lovable characters (voiced by equally lovable character actors), along with some great jazz tunes and a quite funny final "chase" scene, The Aristocats is a great addition to Disney's classic animation (so cool, seeing hand-drawn animation again for first time in awhile!) - one I'm sorry it took this long for me to see. (rated G)  A-