THE MOVIE

Hundreds of years ago in a time when leopards were worshipped like gods, our ancestors sacrificed their children to the leopards. The souls of the children grew inside the leopards, until the leopards became human. Now, they can only copulate with their own kind, otherwise they transform, and before they can become human again, they must kill….they are the Cat People…

Loosely based on the 1942 film of the same name, Cat People is a story about mystery, myth and heightened reality, with a lot of violence and nudity thrown in for good measure. After a short introduction scene eluding to the myth described above, we are introduced to Irena Gallier (Natassja Kinski – Tess, Terminal Velocity) who has just arrived at New Orleans airport waiting to meet her brother Paul (Malcolm MacDowell - A Clockwork Orange, Star Trek: Generations) for the first time since they were orphaned as children. Shortly after settling in with her brother and housekeeper, Female (Ruby Dee – Do the Right Thing, Jungle Fever), we soon discover that there is something not entirely human about Paul.

An attack soon takes place in the area involving a prostitute and a black leopard in a motel room. The New Orleans Zoo is called in to control and ultimately take the leopard into captivity. After a tense scene involving the control of the leopard, we cut back to Irena looking for Paul who was going to show her the sites of New Orleans. She decides to see the sites on her own and she eventually finds herself at the New Orleans Zoo. She comes across the big cat exhibit and is mysteriously drawn to the black leopard which has just recently been taken into captivity. So drawn to this cat in fact, that she is still standing, mesmerised by it way after closing time. Oliver Yates (John Heard – Beaches, Big) the curator of the zoo, notices her standing by the exhibit and goes to talk to her. He is immediately attracted to her and after a dinner date, offers her a job at the zoo gift shop.

A violent incident at the zoo involving the death of one of the keepers leaves Oliver with no choice but to put the black leopard down, however when he gets to the enclosure, the only trace left of the cat is a strange black ooze. At this point Paul appears again acting strangely toward Irena, hinting toward the fact that she is like him, a fact that she firmly denies but deep down knows it to be true. He also tells her that the only way that they can both be released from their nightmare is if they make love so that they can return to their natural state.

Cat People has quite an intriguing premise, but is let down by a number of factors that unfortunately distance the audience from ever truly being totally engaged in it’s plot. The film moves along at a fairly slow pace. Something will happen that stimulates your interest, and then the scene changes and you find yourself shifting in your seat waiting for something interesting to happen again. There are some good moments in the film, they are just few and far between. I also found that there were a couple of plot elements that weren’t really explained properly and that was a little frustrating for me.

A word of WARNING, if you are easily offended by violence and/or nudity, there is much on offer here. As a matter of fact I couldn’t help feel that these two elements were used a little gratuitously to a large degree as A.) a marketing tool, and B.) to regain the viewers attention during the film when things got a bit slow and tedious. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for a bit of violence and nudity, however when it’s used in place of a good storyline to keep an audiences’ interest…. well, you be the judge.

THE TRANSFER

Video:

The movie is presented in 1.85:1 16:9 format.

The transfer presented here is very nice. The film generally has natural colour throughout, when the need calls for it colours appear rich and vivid to enhance the effect of certain scenes, for example warm orange and reds in a number of interior shots and deep blue night scenes, which all look very good here, with no evidence of colour bleeding, or loss of clarity.

Black levels are quite good which is very important for a film such as this where there are a lot of interior / exterior night shots and shadow play. With a little film grain, which is expected for a film of this age, and a few flecks and film artefacts you will not be disappointed with this transfer.

Audio:

The audio is presented in English Dolby Digital 5.1

This is an adequate audio presentation, however it doesn’t really take advantage of the 5.1 track and could very well have been in surround, it wouldn’t have made much of a difference. Dialogue is quite soft compared to everything else. The music is spread evenly and clearly across the front sound stage and occasionally leaks into the rears.

The LFE is used occasionally to support the beat of the music and the occasional sound effect.

THE EXTRAS

Commentary by Director Paul Schrader

The audio is presented in English Dolby Digital 2.0

I found this commentary very interesting indeed, with Schrader speaking very honestly about the style of the film. He also talks to a degree about the affect it had on his personal life at the time as well as why certain scenes were included in the film and how many of the scenes were filmed. Certainly worth a listen.

Documentary: On-set interview with Paul Schrader (10:20)

The Featurette is presented in 1.33:1 format.

This is a short interview with a rather uncomfortable looking Paul Schrader at the time of filming. He basically answers a number of questions relating to what the film is about, why he chose Natassja Kinski to play Irena, themes dealt with in the film and his reasons for making it. The film is not very good quality, looking very blurred and grainy.

Theatrical Trailer

The trailer is presented in 1.33:1 format.

The trailer gives the audience a little bit of an idea of what the story is about, without giving anything away, accompanied by David Bowie’s music and the occasional roaring black leopard, it certainly generates interest in the film.

Documentary: An intimate portrait by Paul Schrader (25:22)

The Featurette is presented in 1.33:1 format.

This is a much more recent interview filmed in 2000 with Paul Schrader who talks much more intimately (hence the title of the feature) about the film now, mainly how they started out with a story for a horror movie which developed into what it finally became, he talks about the crew he worked with, particularly his visual consultant and close friend Ferdinando Scarfiotti, issues he was dealing with personally at the time he made the film, how they shot certain scenes, why he chose key actors to play roles etc. This is a very interesting feature which provides lots of interesting information and facts about the film.

Stills Gallery (6:46)

The Gallery is presented in 1.33:1 format.

This is just a montage of a number of promotional, onset and finished film photos of the cast and crew set to title song sung by David Bowie.

Documentary: A discussion with special make-up effects artist Tom Burman (11:14)

The Featurette is presented in 1.33:1 format.

An interesting discussion with Tom Burman who talks about how make-up effects were achieved for the film. Accompanied with concept designs and photos of the actors having the make-up applied along with scenes from the film showing the final product.

Featurette: Visual effects featurette – Before and after blue screen comparisons (3:10)

The Featurette is presented in 1.33:1 format.

A brief montage of footage showing before and after shots of scenes that would have visual effects inserted into them. Accompanied with music from the film.

Interview: Filmmaker Robert Wise on Val Lewton (3:33)

The Interview is presented in 1.33:1 format.

This is a short interview with Film Director Robert Wise (Sound of Music, Star Trek: The Motion Picture) who talks about Val Lewton, the director of the original Cat People made in 1942. Robert Wise would go onto direct the sequel Curse of the Cat People made in 1944.

SUMMARY

I have to say that some effort has been put in to include a very comprehensive and informative collection of extras. It’s good to see considering the age of the film.

With some impressive visuals and production design, this would certainly have been a standout film for it’s time, for the most part due to the themes and concepts that the filmmakers have attempted to convey. If only the film was a little tighter and the story a little more defined, this may have stood the test of time.