Cat people didn't scare me that much. The acting wasn't that good, the writing could have used another edit or two, and the acting was pretty stiff. The really bad special effect at the end didn't help either.
When I watched it, I kept thinking about how cliched the story and filmmaking style was. Mysterious old legend, were animal, bus jumping out of nowhere for a fake scare--I've seen all of those a million times before. And I don't even watch that many horror movies.
Then I realized that you can't really blame Val Lewton for that. If Cat People is any indication, he pretty much invented the horror genre we know and love (or hate, as the case may be) today. If it feels cliched sometimes, it is because Lewton invented of a lot of what have become cliches from overuse.
I also noticed some stuff that reminded me of citizen Kane. They way the shots were framed (Welles was big on establishing shots of doors, windows, etc.), the sounds of things not shown on the screen, the way light and darkness were used together. (If you've ever seen A Touch of Evil, the scene where Orson Welles is strangling the guy reminded me of the scene where the heroine is walking to the bus). This kind of makes sense, because a lot of the same people worked on the two movies, but the juxtaposition between the greatest movie of all time and a movie about werecats was interesting.
Also, can I be the only one who thinks Cat People is due for a remake? If you kept the camera work and sound editing, tightened up the script a little bit, and hired some slightly better actors, it could be a really good movie. Keep the shadow fight scene, except hire a decent cinematographer so that it looks more spooky and scary.
2 comments:
It's funny you bring up a remake because I was thinking the same thing. How cool would it be to have a present day remake with good actors and a decent special effects budget of one of the original great horror movies? I think a decent amount of everyday Americans would give it a shoot and educated horror scholars like ourselves would have to check it out on principle. If it was well done I think it could be become a classic for our generation. I mean the crank out a Friday The 13th or Nightmare on Elm Street remake every 5 or 10 years, why not a remake of a true classic thats almost 70 years old.
Cat People was remade in 1982 by director Paul Schrader. Schrader was by his own admission not very interested in recreating the feel of the original Cat People, and everything hidden and shadowy in the original film is dealt with in an explicit, if stylized, manner in the newer one. The soundtrack includes a nice David Bowie tune, and the connection to Blackwood's Ancient Sorceries is explored from a somewhat different point of view. I much prefer the Tourneur/Lewton film, but the sequel has its moments.
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