The Fishing Fool: Your New Favorite Weird Cat Movie? 🎣

“The Fishing Fool” is one of those tiny films you stumble upon and wonder how it even exists.

If you're into quirky, almost absurd short films that feel like a home video project gone just right, then absolutely, give this a watch.

Anyone looking for high production value, a deep narrative, or maybe even a coherent plot might find themselves utterly baffled, even a bit annoyed. This is for the patient, the slightly weird, and the folks who appreciate a good, long, silent stare.

Rollin Hamilton, who apparently does everything here, really commits to his role. He's just... a guy. A guy with a fishing rod. And a cat. That cat, by the way, is the true star. Its expressions are priceless, shifting between utter boredom and mild confusion. 😹

There's this one shot, pretty early on, where the camera just holds on the cat for what feels like an eternity. It's sitting there, tail twitching, maybe looking at a bug. It's so mundane, but it really sets the tone. You're either in for this kind of slow burn, or you're already checking your phone.

The 'fishing story' bit in the plot summary is accurate, but also a huge understatement. What actually happens is so wonderfully bizarre. I mean, it goes from zero to "what just happened?!" in a very quiet, very low-key way. The sheer lack of reaction from Hamilton during these moments is part of the charm. He just takes it all in.

Cinematic perspective: Exploring the visual vocabulary of The Fishing Fool (1929) through its definitive frames.

You can tell Hamilton has a real affection for his cat. The way he talks to it sometimes, even when it's clearly not listening, feels very authentic. It's a simple relationship, but it grounds the film, even as things get, well, ungrounded.

The sound design, or lack thereof, is interesting. A lot of natural sounds. Wind, water, birds. Then, when things get weird, the quiet just makes it weirder. No dramatic music cues, just... silence and the occasional odd noise.

I kept thinking about how much effort it must have taken to get the cat to "perform" certain actions. Or maybe it was all just happy accidents. Either way, it works. The cat doesn't act like a trained animal; it acts like a cat. Which makes the whole thing even funnier.

There's a scene where Hamilton is just patiently re-baiting his hook. It’s not exciting. But it’s real. It reminds you that this is, at its heart, about waiting. And then waiting for something unexpected to happen. And it does. Boy, does it ever.

The ending sequence is just... chef's kiss. It doesn't explain much, it just is. You're left with this image, and you kind of have to process it yourself. No big wrap-up, no moral of the story. Just a memory of a very strange fishing trip.

This isn't a movie you analyze in a typical way. It's more like a shared experience, a quiet chuckle. It feels like someone just pointed a camera at their life for a bit, and then things went delightfully off the rails.

So, yeah. If you've got ten minutes and a taste for the wonderfully peculiar, give The Fishing Fool a spin. It's not profound, it's just... itself. And sometimes, that's enough.