★ 6 / 10
Simone Simon ("Irina Dubrovna") comes to work in
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Simone Simon ("Irina Dubrovna") comes to work in New York where she falls in love with Kent Smith ("Oliver Reed"). Their relationship soon becomes strained…
Simone Simon ("Irina Dubrovna") comes to work in New York where she falls in love with Kent Smith ("Oliver Reed"). Their relationship soon becomes strained after she struggles with intimacy - you see she believes that should she ever even kiss someone she loved, she would turn into a violent feline and claw him to death. She confides in her now husband and somewhat sceptical, he sends her to a psychiatrist, the debonaire Tom Conway ("Dr. Judd"). Our story tracks her determination to get past this obsession in the face of her growing suspicion that "Oliver" is seeking solace elsewhere - and that they are planning on having her committed - in a tense and eerie way. The dialogue is quite stilted and the theatricality of the performances rob the film of much of it's pace - but it is still a good horror thriller.
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★ 8 / 10
A man called Oliver Reed falls in love with quirky and timid woman who fears an old curse inside her
ma-cortes
An American man (Kent Smith) marries a Serbian immigrant called Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) , a shy woman who fears that she will turn into the cat person of…
An American man (Kent Smith) marries a Serbian immigrant called Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) , a shy woman who fears that she will turn into the cat person of her homeland's fables if they are intimate together . Dubrovna believes she carries the Serbian curse of the panther . As strange Irena knew strange, fierce pleasures that no other woman could ever feel . She was marked with the curse of those who slink and and court and kill y night . Oliver then sends Irena for treatment with psychiatrist Dr. Louis Judd (Tom Conway) . Meanwhile , Reed finds consolation with his colleague Alice Moore (Jane Randolph) and then jealousy and envy crop out . Later on , rampages take place through community . Over-the-top classic picture filled with thrills , intrigue , drama , a loving triangle , some moments of shock and results to be pretty entertaining . Atmospheric goings-on dominate this typically tasteful horror study from director Tourner . Suspense , tension and horror is exposed lurking , menacing , harassing in rooms , stairs , doors and a menagerie . Cinematography by Nicholas Musuraca is magnificent , plenty of lights and dark originating an eerie and creepy scenario . The movie was produced by RKO and its most known and famed producer , Val Lewton , the biggest producer of horror classics (I walked with a Zombie , Leopard man , Bedlam , Ghost ship ), plus he produced for director Mark Robson (in Cat people he works as an editor) numerous films (Isle of the dead , seventh victim) with similar technicians and artists . R.K.O. gave Val Lewton only $150,000 to make the film , resulting in "creative" producing . In fact ; because of the incredibly tight budget, sets from Orson Welles' The Magnificent Amberson were re-used . This forced many of the scenes requiring special effects to be done in shadows which many believe increased the suspense of the film . When studio execs insisted that more footage of the panther be included in the movie, Lewton was able to maintain the budget and the suspense of the film by limiting how many scenes the panther could be visibly seen and told the cinematographer to "keep the panther in the shadows" . Thus the panther called Dynamite appeared in another film by the same producers/directors: 'Leopard man' and was only visible in the office and zoo cage .RKO usual musician , Roy Webb , creates a fine score with the habitual musical director Bakaleinikoff . Excellent and evocative set design at charge of Albert D'Agostino . The picture was stunningly directed by Jaques Tourneur , being filmed in 18 days . The film was such a hit at the box office, the releases of the next two Lewton films I walked with a Zombie and Leopard man were delayed . Torneur knew the imagination was stronger than anything filmmakers could show visually and played on it with breathtaking results . Addicts to RKO horror should no account miss this movie . The flick will appeal to classic cinema moviegoers . Followed by a sequel titled ¨Curse of the cat people¨ by Robert Wise with similar cast as Simone Simon , Kent Smith and Elizabeth Russell . And an inferior remake (1982) by Paul Schrader with Natassja Kinski , John Heard , Malcolm McDowell , Scott Paulin and Ed Begley
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★ 8 / 10
A man called Oliver Reed falls in love with quirky and timid woman who fears an old curse inside her
ma-cortes
An American man (Kent Smith) marries a Serbian immigrant called Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) , a shy woman who fears that she will turn into the cat person of…
An American man (Kent Smith) marries a Serbian immigrant called Irena Dubrovna (Simone Simon) , a shy woman who fears that she will turn into the cat person of her homeland's fables if they are intimate together . Dubrovna believes she carries the Serbian curse of the panther . As strange Irena knew strange, fierce pleasures that no other woman could ever feel . She was marked with the curse of those who slink and and court and kill y night . Oliver then sends Irena for treatment with psychiatrist Dr. Louis Judd (Tom Conway) . Meanwhile , Reed finds consolation with his colleague Alice Moore (Jane Randolph) and then jealousy and envy crop out . Later on , rampages take place through community .
Over-the-top classic picture filled with thrills , intrigue , drama , a loving triangle , some moments of shock and results to be pretty entertaining . Atmospheric goings-on dominate this typically tasteful horror study from director Tourner . Suspense , tension and horror is exposed lurking , menacing , harassing in rooms , stairs , doors and a menagerie . Cinematography by Nicholas Musuraca is magnificent , plenty of lights and dark originating an eerie and creepy scenario . The movie was produced by RKO and its most known and famed producer , Val Lewton , the biggest producer of horror classics (I walked with a Zombie , Leopard man , Bedlam , Ghost ship ), plus he produced for director Mark Robson (in Cat people he works as an editor) numerous films (Isle of the dead , seventh victim) with similar technicians and artists . R.K.O. gave Val Lewton only $150,000 to make the film , resulting in "creative" producing . In fact ; because of the incredibly tight budget, sets from Orson Welles' The Magnificent Amberson were re-used . This forced many of the scenes requiring special effects to be done in shadows which many believe increased the suspense of the film . When studio execs insisted that more footage of the panther be included in the movie, Lewton was able to maintain the budget and the suspense of the film by limiting how many scenes the panther could be visibly seen and told the cinematographer to "keep the panther in the shadows" . Thus the panther called Dynamite appeared in another film by the same producers/directors: 'Leopard man' and was only visible in the office and zoo cage .
RKO usual musician , Roy Webb , creates a fine score with the habitual musical director Bakaleinikoff . Excellent and evocative set design at charge of Albert D'Agostino . The picture was stunningly directed by Jaques Tourneur , being filmed in 18 days . The film was such a hit at the box office, the releases of the next two Lewton films I walked with a Zombie and Leopard man were delayed . Torneur knew the imagination was stronger than anything filmmakers could show visually and played on it with breathtaking results . Addicts to RKO horror should no account miss this movie . The flick will appeal to classic cinema moviegoers . Followed by a sequel titled ¨Curse of the cat people¨ by Robert Wise with similar cast as Simone Simon , Kent Smith and Elizabeth Russell . And an inferior remake (1982) by Paul Schrader with Natassja Kinski , John Heard , Malcolm McDowell , Scott Paulin and Ed Begley
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