I was entirely with the film up to the last couple of minutes. Puff going with Gabrielle shocked me, but after thinking about it, I think I understand what it meant.
As for the mice who were apparently headed for New York, does anybody have any interpretations of this?
It was just a final gag, showing the mice once again acting like humans.
shareYes, it was a final gag but on another level it was much more than that. It set into motion once again the push and pull element of nature vs. nuture and asks the audience which matters most.
The mice have now learned all of these human skill sets (i.e. dining with correct forks; strategizing better escape routes to evade predators; writing the letters of the alphabet; etc.) that would serve them well in a world to which they were well-suited. But they are not...because they are mice and they function properly in their natural habitat which is the wild.
As for Puff, he is now a functioning member of society with a cultural intelligence that could rival most. But even with this new wealth of knowledge and experience the somberness in his eyes while looking through the car window at the forest reveals that he longs to be with nature and live in the wild even though, on the surface of things, it would not be a wise choice.
"Nobody can hear you. Nobody cares about you. Nothing will come of this."