Holiday Favorites

[TechnicolorAcid]

The first of Laurence Gordon Clark’s Ghost Stories for Christmas, The Stalls of Barchester, features a malevolent ghost cat. Then there’s The Lion in Winter.

I’m more so looking for more light hearted fare for the season so I don’t think I’m entirely willing to look at Ghost Stories just yet, maybe the 31st, just as the darkness of night is lifted with After the Thin Man which I hear has some ties to New Years. However for ghost cat movies, I will possibly be checking out House before it’s definitely my brand of off beat and absurd plus I mean, most horror films are technically reassuring in a way. Setting you up for suspense and terror and by the end, welcoming you home with the idea that any task is beatable if you try hard enough. Plus it’s by a 10 year girl technically so there’s that too.

[TechnicolorAcid]

Can't wait to hear what else you decide to watch, TechnicolorAcid. I love the sound of that project and you've already started out with some inspired choices. (I haven't gotten around to The Cassandra Cat yet; is it Christmas-themed?)

Not sure if this qualifies as "heartwarming," exactly, but last December I was delighted to discover Mr. Soft-Touch, an overlooked Christmas noir (?) starring Glenn Ford as a criminal with a stash of stolen money hiding out from the police at an orphanage/homeless shelter during the holidays. There are some light comic situations involving the orphaned kids and the other characters at the shelter, as Ford's character struggles with his conscience somewhat in the manner of Scrooge or the Grinch. The sweetness and sentimentality of these scenes is tempered by the crime/suspense elements, culminating in a memorable, borderline psychotronic final scene (which I won't spoil) involving Ford disguised as Santa. I wish a good physical release of this existed because it's truly a forgotten gem.

Cassandra Cat isn’t a Christmas film but it’s a lovely and charming film that feels like Luis Garcia Berlanga’s Boyfriend in Sight with the it’s story and satire of the adult world, the colors of The Wizard of Oz, and the childlike imagination of A Tale of Lost Time crossed with the technical side of Karel Zeman were brought together into a mixing pot and baked into a lovely little film. As for your recommendation, it is wholly appreciated, however will not be part of the project due to the theme of cats that has been chosen but I will watch it and maybe even discuss it with you, who knows.

[swo17]

Don't forget Sátántangó and L'Enfance nue!

[Mr Sausage]

Or Hammer’s Shadow of the Cat and Fulci’s The Black Cat.

[beamish14]

Time to whip out The Junky’s Christmas again

With Hanukkah upon us in a few days, I might put on Enemies: A Love Story

[FrauBlucher]

Don't forget Sátántangó

I would pay a lot for Tarr to come out of retirement and make his version of A Christmas Carol

[TechnicolorAcid]

Alright gentlemen I have gathered some of your suggestions and complied all into a neat little schedule, though spoilers, Satantango will not be included unfortunately. When I’m done I’ll post my thoughts on every film/short accordingly for you all to read. Some will be entirely cat centered, some will have them as small players and the last one doesn’t even include a cat, though the name Kitty is one that appears and it also premiered on December 25th so I figured why not. Thank you all in advance for your suggestions.

[therewillbeblus]

Don't forget Sátántangó

I would pay a lot for Tarr to come out of retirement and make his version of A Christmas Carol

I feel like Sátántangó is his warped, subversively cruel and alienating (eliminating the egocentrically-handholding ghosts etc.) version of A Christmas Carol

[beamish14]

Alright gentlemen I have gathered some of your suggestions and complied all into a neat little schedule, though spoilers, Satantango will not be included unfortunately. When I’m done I’ll post my thoughts on every film/short accordingly for you all to read. Some will be entirely cat centered, some will have them as small players and the last one doesn’t even include a cat, though the name Kitty is one that appears and it also premiered on December 25th so I figured why not. Thank you all in advance for your suggestions.

Sounds great. Don’t forget Comfort & Joy (1984)!

[reaky]

If you’re going down the cat, er, rabbit-hole, let me recommend Anne Billson’s smashing Cats on Film (available in paperback and Kindle here: https://multiglom.com/2019/03/11/cats-o ... available/ )

[TechnicolorAcid]

If you’re going down the cat, er, rabbit-hole, let me recommend Anne Billson’s smashing Cats on Film (available in paperback and Kindle here: https://multiglom.com/2019/03/11/cats-o ... available/ )

Thank you but I think I’m about to have more than enough cat films for a while, especially with some of the shorts and double features planned.

[therewillbeblus]

Not sure if this qualifies as "heartwarming," exactly, but last December I was delighted to discover Mr. Soft-Touch, an overlooked Christmas noir (?) starring Glenn Ford as a criminal with a stash of stolen money hiding out from the police at an orphanage/homeless shelter during the holidays. There are some light comic situations involving the orphaned kids and the other characters at the shelter, as Ford's character struggles with his conscience somewhat in the manner of Scrooge or the Grinch. The sweetness and sentimentality of these scenes is tempered by the crime/suspense elements, culminating in a memorable, borderline psychotronic final scene (which I won't spoil) involving Ford disguised as Santa. I wish a good physical release of this existed because it's truly a forgotten gem.

This was a hoot, but also a well-crafted film riding on wit from all parties in front of and behind the camera. It's what The Glass Wall was trying to be in terms of. not only plot but propulsive narrative stimulation across settings, yet the lighthearted 'Christmas-y' tone is effectively woven in and out of the noir atmosphere. It's a great dissonant dish of sincere and silly vibes and somehow works as both a halfway-decent noir and a weird Christmas movie. Evelyn Keyes' genuine and generously-captured perf helps a lot, not only to emulate the incarnation of Christmas Spirit, but to provide a comprehensible reason why Ford's hiveminded grit would wilt around her introduction into his life, even on the lam! There's a pretty great looking copy on back channels FYI

[reaky]

Can't wait to hear what else you decide to watch, TechnicolorAcid. I love the sound of that project and you've already started out with some inspired choices. (I haven't gotten around to The Cassandra Cat yet; is it Christmas-themed?)

Not sure if this qualifies as "heartwarming," exactly, but last December I was delighted to discover Mr. Soft-Touch, an overlooked Christmas noir (?) starring Glenn Ford as a criminal with a stash of stolen money hiding out from the police at an orphanage/homeless shelter during the holidays. There are some light comic situations involving the orphaned kids and the other characters at the shelter, as Ford's character struggles with his conscience somewhat in the manner of Scrooge or the Grinch. The sweetness and sentimentality of these scenes is tempered by the crime/suspense elements, culminating in a memorable, borderline psychotronic final scene (which I won't spoil) involving Ford disguised as Santa. I wish a good physical release of this existed because it's truly a forgotten gem.

Yes, this one has some of the most gear-crunching tonal shifts outside a James Whale film. Its weird seesaw nature is encapsulated by the fact that both George Bailey’s mum and the guide-dog murdering bastard from NAKED CITY appear in the cast. And you thought Popeye Doyle was the first badass to don a Santa suit.

[TechnicolorAcid]

Hey guys quick update since I’m halfway there and I’ve technically done a bit more than 11 cat films already. This is really fun if not overly time/energy consuming and it’s introduced me to several international and American gems. So I figured I’d drop some hints for titles I have seen. For starters I have a modern Animated classic, a manga based charmer, an off the wall and undeservedly forgotten Japanese cult hit, maybe one of the strangest early shorts to ever exist, an early 40s mystery with a tone shifting and very shocking twist (which subjects my worst review, heads up), and a Tom and Jerry cartoon amongst others. There’s a lot more ahead so stay tuned into my depth into cat cinema.

[reaky]

Another one that’s new to me: WHEN DARKNESS FALLS (1960) is textbook Christmas Cosy Crime - it starts like The Holly and the Ivy, with family and friends gathering for the holiday at the home of the clergyman paterfamilias, but then the murders start… It’s on Netflix, along with a raft of other films from Sweden.

[reaky]

Another classic Christmas discovery for me - NEVER SAY GOODBYE is a mashup of The Awful Truth and Christmas in Connecticut, and gives us Errol Flynn doing both Santa and Humphrey Bogart (but repeatedly denying he’s Robin Hood). He was such a deft comedian, and should have done more in this vein.

[therewillbeblus]

Most of the films I’m forced to sit through during the holidays aren’t outright offensive, but Christmas with the Kranks prompted a critical thought: Would you change your last name to Krank in order to remove this piece of art from the planet as an act of community service? Jamie Lee Curtis can be funny, but trying to play a 40s screwball lead as a scream queen is grating and confusing. If my partner was always at that volume I’d probably keep going back for the chocolate too

[Jonathan S]

Another classic Christmas discovery for me - NEVER SAY GOODBYE is a mashup of The Awful Truth and Christmas in Connecticut, and gives us Errol Flynn doing both Santa and Humphrey Bogart (but repeatedly denying he’s Robin Hood). He was such a deft comedian, and should have done more in this vein.

Thanks! I never expected to see Flynn following Linder and the Marx Bros. in the classic mirror routine (48 mins. in). Much of the comedy is played broadly but there are some nice subtle touches like the way he injects the shortest possible squirt of a soda into his Scotch - a hangover cure - like a punctuation mark between sentences (57 mins.) I gradually realised that Flynn is sometimes channeling Charley Chase, quite explicitly I think in his embarrassed, twitchy mock-smile when watching his ex-wife dance (73 mins.) - and in his hand gestures in the preceding table scene. Flynn and Chase did resemble each other facially and of course both succumbed early to alcoholism.

[reaky]

After seeing this I will forever refer to them as “tee martoonis”.

[jazzo]

Rob Reiner’s The Sure Thing is a film I’ve loved to bits since first seeing it as a teen, myself, back in the mid-80s. It’s always been subversively funny in what its premise sells itself as (teen sex comedy), but Reiner, thankfully, had other things on his mind, because there ain’t a boob nor hot tub in sight. He really just wanted to make a small but intelligent film about two young people shedding the societal gender roles and familial expectations they once felt duty-bound to embrace, to become more genuine versions of themselves and develop relationships of substance and respect.

Reiner, as commercial filmmakers go, really couldn’t be touched back then. His run from 1982 to 1990 really was incredible; populist films, very, but with a sharp, observant sense of humour and voice; from maybe the funniest film ever made (This is Spinal Tap) to one of the first honest films about that last vestige of innocence young boys have before becoming young men (Stand By Me), to a film that impossibly works as a full on fantasy, but that also skewers every genre trope it embraces (The Princess Bride).

And just for shits and giggles, there’s also the template-setting modern romantic comedy, and a fairly riveting court room drama in there, too.

But The Sure Thing is my personal favourite, and revisiting as a middle-aged adult, it now overwhelms me with its warmth.

John Cusack has never been more affable or sweet, and you can immediately see what set him apart from his contemporaries and why he deservedly became a star for a brief period of time. Daphne Zuniga is simply entrancing, and why she didn’t become a bigger star is a confounding mystery.

And best of all, the film gives ample space for every one of its cavalcade of character actors, young and old, to make loving, lasting impressions out of their supporting roles.

After almost forty years (and probably twenty viewings), it still makes me genuinely laugh out loud five or six times.

And it’s a holiday movie.

And it’s a road movie.

Just perfect.

[beamish14]

It’s a really great movie. I loved Anthony Edwards in the 80’s with films like this, Gotcha, How I Got into College, etc.

The scene where Cusack is pacing alongside the pool is just a classic. I think this is the movie where he debuted the trenchcoat aesthetic he sported for the next decade or so, allegedly as a result of not getting the role of Bender in The Breakfast Club

[TechnicolorAcid]

Merry Christmas Everyone, Here is the Complete Christmas Cat Catalogue (Please note I’m terrible at articulating my thoughts and these all are from immediately after viewing them). Thanks for Blip Martindale for the idea and thanks everyone else for some suggestions.

December 1stShow

The Cassandra Cat:
Jiri Brdecka is a well known figure in Czech cinema for his screenwriting credits on especially, the works of Oldrich Lipsky and Karel Zeman and his work, to me at least, also his work is one that exists through the idea of the imagination and The Cassandra Cat is one that proves this hypothesis the most. A mad brush of insanity and technicolor psychedelia that feels like what would happen if Victor Fleming made a remake of Luis Garcia Berlanga’s Boyfriend in Sight with the childlike wonder of Aleksandr Ptushko’s A Tale of Lost Time. A wonderful look into the spirit of children along with the need for imagination and a wonderful fairytale style story to boot.

December 2ndShow

Bell, Book, and Candle:
Is there anything more wonderful than Kim Novak as a witch, with her amazing looks, seducing Jimmy Stewart with a magic cat with a goofy Jack Lemmon as her brother. Probably, but don’t spoil my fun. Bell, Book, and Candle is a film not really focused on deep discussions of Witchcraft or the deep philosophical ruminations of being a witch in secret (which today could almost read as queer subtext in some ways), it’s just a nice little rom-com with all the tropes you’d typically expect, serving as an almost precursor to Bewitched in a way, quirky relatives and all. One thing I really love about this film is the colors, the colors in this thing absolutely pop in a way few 50s Hollywood films did. It almost feels like the perfect follow up to Cassandra in how vibrant it gets, not to mention the magical cat. The lighting department absolutely deserved their paycheck and more. Absolutely hilarious this was made the same year as Vertigo as it almost feels like a gender swapped Vertigo in the most lighthearted way possible.

December 3rdShow

2 Wrongs and a Small Right:
I must confess, Blip Martindale gave me this idea pretty late into the 3rd so alas the only cat film I saw was the 1 minute short, The Sick Kitten which was cute. So I’ll leave the reviews of the films I saw short.
Unfaithfully Yours: A Sturge delight with a plentiful amount of great wordplay and wonderful slapstick that does for adultery and murder attempts what something like Kidnapping Caucasian Style does for bride kidnapping, turns it into a farce.
Movie Crazy: I decided to like the Harold Lloyd collection and after looking at the 2 earliest shorts featured, I wanted to check this out and well, it’s not peak-Lloyd and I think another Lloyd talkie coming up later delivers much more entertainment but dang it if I didn’t have fun. The gags are at the very least charming, Harold is such a lovely guy to watch, the direction is well put, and the supporting cast bounces off Harold in a really solid way.

December 4thShow

Comic Cats:
For December 4th, I watched a short first called ‘When the Cat’s Away’, which technically is more of a mice centered film but I found this while looking for another film of the same name and figured why not. It’s fun, it’s nice, and the animation really bops.
Then I went on to watch The Cat’s Paw. This was my first Lloyd film for some reason, and it still hits, minus the offensive use of yellowface and the occasional stereotype (although the Chinese are treated better than you’d expect). The plot is wonderfully put together and a delightful satire of corrupt politics and that ending, without going into spoilers, that climatic moment where Harold gathers all the criminals up, it’s maybe the darkest thing I’ve seen in a classic Hollywood comedy before wonderfully bringing the tone back with a light but extremely funny twist. No cats though so 0 stars.
Next up for the 4th was Cat City which had actual cats this time and if you haven’t seen it, it’s available through Deaf Crocodile and if you want to see it free, Archive.org has the English dub to watch, though slightly trimmed or if you want the Hungarian version, go onto ok.ru. I had a blast with this, it’s extremely deadpan, a wonderful satire on the boss/worker dynamic, it has a really good musical number (2 actually), the animation is phenomenal, the voice acting is great, it works as an excellent little spy film, and there’s Mexican vampire bats who have gun guitars. I really don’t want to go in depth because 1.) I don't have the word space and 2.) again I urge you to just watch it, it’s a blast and me saying anything about it serves it no justice.

December 5thShow

Miss Minoes:
When I first prepared my list, looking at my opinions I saw Miss Minoes, remembering that I heard of it before on the Criterion Channel when it was on but just never seeing it. So naturally I put it down, expecting a middle of the road kids movie. Never underestimate the Dutch though as this film knocked me off my feet, even if it was in a surprisingly good English dub. The sets and the costumes are wonderfully designed and everyone, even the little kid, is so fully HUMAN, not the cats (because they’d hate for me to say that, so they’re fully CAT). I’m a pure sap for lovely little children’s movies and this delivered on that front. Plus it has maybe the most garring “shit” I’ve ever heard so bonus points there. Also the talking cats brought back memories of a younger me seeing Cats and Dogs, which was maybe the first movie I actively disliked but I will not go into why. So far this list has been nothing short of excellent films.

December 6thShow

The Black Cat Double Feature:
Mr. Sausage your request has been taken but unfortunately I knew what you were doing bringing up a Fulci so alas, I paired it up with a Hugh Herbert comedy afterwards.
Now the 1981 Fulci film is my first Fulci despite me actively knowing about his horror legacy for a long time and well, I expected eyes, I got eyes. This definitely is a lot more coherent than most Giallo films, structurally speaking, and while I’m sure it does have flaws (I’m not a professional writer so I’m not the best at finding flaws), I had a lot of fun with it. The best thing that I will say is that the direction by Fulci is wonderful, it gives off this surreal vibe, that something is just off but you’re not sure what, every dark space holds tension without your knowledge of whether or not the cat with pop out, the fog consuming almost everything but the people inside, and the recordings of the dead hold sinister words and screams. I would be lying if I didn’t say I didn’t feel tension in my bones and this is one of the few times a cat scare actually counts as a scare, so points there. Certainly better than The Uncanny at the very least and certainly more gorey.
Now I had expected to be a bit startled by The Black Cat so I put up The Black Cat from 1941. Now you might be wondering why not the 1934 version, well because this one is technically a comedy and I hadn’t seen this so I figured, why the heck not. Plus the 1934 film is arguably darker than the Fulci film. But I’m getting sidetracked so let’s continue. During my watching I developed an odd sense of deja vu, like I had seen this before and then it hit me, this is The Cat Creeps from 1946, 2 men (one of whom serves as the wacky comic sidekick) go into an old house where the old lady who owns the house is killed by someone who wants her money, entailing a thread of mystery and curiosity. Now I’m wondering why the heck didn’t I go with that one instead. This is technically a comedy, but the comedy acts as an antidote to some seriously messed up moments for a supposed comedy, there’s one murder that is almost as surprising as a key spoiler moment in The Seventh Victim, if you know, you know and like, I appreciate your balls, Universal, but, I don’t know, again not a professional critic but it feels off, having that in an otherwise previously light hearted if not slightly dark film with Hugh Herbert (who’s great in this, absolutely charming). Now that I’ve brought up one cast member, the cast is surprisingly good in this, the standouts being Basil Rathbone as one of the relatives of the old woman and Bela Lugosi as a sinister groundskeeper. The technical talent also is top-notch with a good atmosphere and great cinematography for a C-tier Universal movie. It’s fine but it’s unfortunately just that. Fitting the worst movie so far gets the worst review.

December 7thShow

The Childish Cats Short + Feature:
Starting off the 7th, my short of choice was the Best Animated Short Film, The Cat Concerto, a Tom and Jerry cartoon that is arguably their most famous so I don’t really think I need to dive into it too much but to sum up my thoughts, it’s a very enjoyable short with great humor, great animation, and is a good example of the famous Tom and Jerry dynamic, even without being in their famous house which populates most of their work.
Afterwards I watched That Darn Cat! (the original 1965 version). The plot’s simple, a cat is given a watch on it’s neck which is deduced to have meant to be Help (there’s only an H, an E, and a little scribble that looks like an L), which potentially connects it to a bank robbery turned kidnapping case, leading all sorts of wild gags and misunderstandings with the cat at the center of the film. Now you might be thinking that based on my review of The Black Cat (1941), I wouldn’t like this because it’s a comedy that revolves around a kidnapping, which is a very serious subject and could easily lead to tonal shifts, right? Nope, instead this was probably the most fun I’ve had with a movie in a while. Here’s the thing, The Black Cat (1941) is not good because it tries to be serious with dark twists while also having a trunk full of kitty cats. You can do both sure, but either make it a dark comedy or don’t include all these tone swifting moments. That Darn Cat! though keeps things relatively light, either when we cut to the kidnapping victims and her kidnappers, there’s a palpable sense of danger but they don’t show anything truly horrid like her being beat up silly, at least none that we see. The kidnappers are villains but they’re caricatures of them. At the same time, the rest of the movie is just charming. It paints a small town loveliness that wouldn’t be out of place in an actual American neighborhood, the residents we see all have their quirks and individual traits, even ones we don’t see (like The Landlord’s Sister), are given little details about them. You have the Momma’s boy, the surfer who needs to mature, the prowling neighbor (played wonderfully by Elsa Lanchester who was previously seen in Bell, Book, and Candle), her husband, the drive-in workers. Each of them feels different from one another and it creates this environment of peak ‘60s America. The gags are great too and they flow nicely together into the story. In fact the whole film has this breezy pace to it while letting us sit with it’s characters and it gives the film a charm that only old Disney films could have done. I guess it does make sense that this is a Disney film but it holds that kind of magic only Disney could bring.

December 8thShow

Samurai Cat/Neko Samurai:
Okay this one won’t take long because I feel inclined to say, I’m not similar with any of the source material of this movie so it’s like presenting an incomplete puzzle, there’s going to be context missing but, this was cute. The tale of a tired and grumpy tough guy who develops a bond with something cute, like a cat in this movie, is an old one. But there’s a reason why it’s used so much. Because it’s effective, I won’t lie, the shots of the cute cat gave me warmth. The comedy’s well put together too and I laughed at some of the more comical moments like when they’re trying to replace the girl cat but inside try to use a male cat with one guy saying that he could cut “it” off. It feels a bit like things needed to be more developed but considering this is a summarized version of previous events (to my knowledge), I’m not going to complain. It is what it is and I have no qualms with that.

December 9thShow

The WTF Neko! Short + Feature:
I started off this viewing day with Cat Soup and HOLY SHIT! Remember when I said that Cat City was the best one of this lot. I was wrong. This is such an honest to god perfect short film even though I couldn’t understand what was happening half the time. Forgive me for not being able to dive into my thoughts perfectly in advance but I’m writing this a little after I finished watching it and it’s boggling my mind. The animation is stellar, maybe the most beautifully animated film I’ve ever seen (like that fucking bathtub perspective shot, oh my god!). The story is, as previously mentioned, slightly confusing but it just feels… nice, like this is what Purgatory feels like, it’s empty and bad things may happen, but it’s smooth and peaceful too, though death lies around every corner. It’s difficult to explain but that’s just the vibe I felt. There’s also the theme of sibling connection as the younger cat brother tries to save his sister by trying to make her soul whole again which is so adorable and heartwarming. But then, that ending, without spoilers, that ending broke me, what you may get from it may be different from my view (not going into spoilers) but it made me tear up. My review does no justice to this, no review does, just watch this.
Umm so for my feature I watched House from 1977 which is a wild 180 from Cat Soup while holding the utter confusion levels I had from Cat Soup. But somehow it’s perfect to be paired with that short because it’s such an oddly comic, mind-disorientating acid trip of a film. Even in scenes that aren’t really weird/odd, it carries this level of artificial fairytale which makes sense because, as most of you people know, this was written by Obayashi’s 10 year old daughter after seeing Jaws. Every cinematic technique is used to bend your mind until the very definition of a horror film becomes so jumbled and confused, that you’re not even sure if you haven’t been watching a film out of an alternate universe. But let me just say, if that alternate universe produces movies like that constantly, I don’t think I’m living in the proper universe.

December 10thShow

The Comedy in Japan Double Feature:
I started off the 10th with 1936’s I Am a Cat and this is another film for which I haven’t read up on the source material so I will not be comparing this to the original novel. The film itself has a nice relaxing feel, there are no sizable stakes because there is no need for them, it’s just focused on the problems our life has. Nowhere is this best shown then near the beginning of the film as the town gossip says there’s bigger news than Germany bombing France, a scientist being in love with one of the town’s women. Even when the teacher and his family get robbed, it’s not treated as a big deal and you know, after some of the wild stuff I’ve seen, even if they are wonderful, it’s nice to go into a serene film for this challenge. Also quick side note for viewing this film, I highly recommend viewing it on the Cinema Japan Retrospective YouTube channel with Maya Grohn’s subs, it opens with a brief background, includes brief descriptions of some Japanese words to help non-Japanese speakers out with some of the humor, and even includes bits of the cat’s narration from the novel despite none actually appearing in the movie. It made my viewing experience much more pleasant and despite the grammatical errors, it’s maybe the best subtitle work I’ll probably see throughout this retrospective.
Then in a complete 180, I watched Cats in Park Avenue. Listen, I know I just said Cat Soup was the best one out of all of them, and that still is somewhat true, but this is just one of the best things I’ve ever seen. It is life affirming, there is no cynicism, there is no hatred, just pure unadulterated joy. The very loose plot summary is a group prepares to put on a cat themed musical but there’s so much more to this film (like there’s an animated sequence of cats singing). Dare I say it, it’s wilder than Obayashi’s House. It’s nonstop energy pulsing through your veins and when it stops that energy, it’s showing you an adorable cat with her babies. There is warmth in this movie, like a goofy old weird who can still make you laugh. There are better movies than this but this is maybe the most wholesome film I’ve ever had the pleasure to sit through. Despite that, I kept thinking about All That Jazz surprisingly, with it’s wonderful editing, look into the production of a musical with a bit of a grumpy smoking director at the helm, and the wonderful ending musical (though this is in a much more different context with a much more different tone). I feel that this is the peak for cat movies, there’s no contest. I wish I can one day tell you all more in a greater discussion but I want you all to seek it out. It hurts my soul that there’s not even an official DVD of this thing, like the quality I watched online was incredible so it’s clearly not an issue with the film stock and Toei is clearly willing to license out their films to Blu-Ray companies so I ask, where is the Criterion release of this we deserve.

December 11thShow

The Cat Can’t Do That Short + Feature:
After the onslaught of wild Japanese cinema (which was planned on accident I swear), I decided to venture onto the oddness of opposite ends of 20th Century Hollywood.
First up is maybe the strangest American actuality, The Boxing Cats. An actuality for context is generally some little short that captures something about human life or our surroundings so this technically counts as one. It’s surprising to even say something more than 3 words about this very short piece but it reminds me of my memories of seeing carnivals and circuses in my youth with all their kooky displays and this is one that would have fit right in, in fact it’s possible that during the early 1890s, this was being exhibited in a carnival as some great feat of technological mastery. It brings me back to those more innocent days when everything was enjoyably odd in a child’s eyes (not that they minded).
Afterwards I watched The Better Zootopia, oh sorry Cats Don’t Dance. Cats Don’t Dance was a bomb at the box office and that’s a shame because under better promotion, this would have been a hit. The film moves around with an energy generally unseen in animated films, each scene feels vibrant and chaotic, before those emotional lows hit and it gets sober and I’ll admit, this is a very somber look at the past of Hollywood. Zootopia generally tries to focus on just race/how it’s viewed in general but I feel that by focusing on one specific aspect, it gets it’s point off clearer. I think my favorite moment in this regard is a scene with Woolie the Mammoth, the mascot of the studio, playing the piano and when he’s asked why he wasn’t allowed to play for films by our main cat, Danny, he remarks that Hollywood only lets him be the mascot and nothing more. Wikipedia lists him as an Asian elephant and the fact that he’s specifically an Asian elephant feels like a criticism of how, in the past, Asians were often stereotyped and forced to play the same parts (which was why people like Anna May Wong went independent), and that is conveyed surprisingly subtle. And my favorite part is that, no of them are entirely regretful of the humans, more so that they just want opportunities because each of them, deep down, holds an optimism for a better life, releasing it all out in a great moment in the middle as all the animals join together for a stellar dance sequence that allows them to (worth noting Gene Kelly actually helped out in that department before he tragically died in 1996, a year before the film’s release). But that’s only part of the film because the rest of it, from the comic timing to the wonderfully villainous Darla, it is still a great kids film and well, I couldn’t help but find warmth and love in it.

December 12thShow

Kedi:
The city of Istanbul runs with cats to the point where some would call it the Cat Capital of the world. This documentary attempts to explore the people of Istanbul’s relationship with the cats of the city and in turn, exposes the inherent kindness of them. There’s one moment that particularly struck me as a wonderful example of that idea with a man who found a box of kittens and decided to take care of them and feed them, not for any selfish reason but out of the goodness of his soul. As a Muslim, hearing the moments of the people talking about how cats know of the existence of God and view us as a middleman between the cats and God felt oddly comforting to me and then the boat story, my goodness that boat story, that was so wholesome and heart-warming to me that I felt the happiest I’ve ever felt watching a movie maybe ever. And the interview segments aren’t the only great thing about this film, the documentary’s look into the lives of the cats was adorable and cute while also bringing me a look into how the world of cats parallels our own. Cats are smarter than most people give them credit for and this just proves it. I want to say more but the utter joy I got from this, especially considering everything that happens in this film, really did happen, just bypasses any actual thoughts I have.

December 13thShow

The Cat from Outer Space:
Another live action Disney film, The Cat from Outer Space isn’t as good as That Darn Cat!, but it still charms. The plot isn’t anything special but it feels nice, it’s just a goofy little kids film and it works because it’s just that. The effects and sets are well crafted, the comedy made me chuckle, and the acting is well done. Nothing else for this one except the climax is a bit long. A charming one but That Darn Cat should be the feline Disney film to watch (the original).

December 14thShow

A Cat in Paris:
Venturing into France we have A Cat in Paris and it’s an animated film this time that takes place (mostly) over one night. There’s a casual and smooth energy to this film that places you right in the middle of the action but not so much that you start to get a headache. The way the story sets itself up before rapidly turning into something much bigger and grander feels tight and loose with delightfully comical characters and a tension that stews into this chaotic night of characters shifting through each other, connected to each other in ways they didn’t except and those who’s pasts mix with the presents. The animation too fits this feel, moving briskly and smoothly, the movements of the thief especially feel like those of a snake slithering. In short, a nice little watch.

December 15thShow

Harry and Tonto:
From Paul Mazursky comes a very somber road trip movie. Now typically road trip movies have at least some somber stuff in this but I did not expect to be this devastated from this one. It bubbles with anxieties of getting old, losing old friends, trying to reconnect with others, and slowly getting less connected with your family. This is described as a comedy and it is funny at points but I cried several times during this film. Especially helpful is the wonderful performance by Art Carney who basically is Harry and he deserved that Best Actor award even though he was facing off against a bunch of other stellar performances. He gives this somber feel to his performance while presenting himself with a warmth to it. Each character feels real and is expertly written and their interactions feel human like during that dinner scene with Harry’s family members making me feel as though I’m sitting and chatting with my own family. The struggle of the elderly as set up earlier in this review is wonderfully done, contrasting the free but separate youth with the connected but ever lonely elderly folks. There’s a moment where at the airport as Harry is requested to give the cat box to airline security, he’s unable to do so, as though he can’t bare himself to separate from his last true friend he still has after heading out to Chicago, even for a moment, and that just put a knife into my heart. I guess I’m too sappy, but at the very least this movie isn’t, just sentimental, almost like an oddly fitting brother to Make Way for Tomorrow.

December 16thShow

The Sunrise, The Rain, and the Sunlight Again Set:
I knew what I was getting myself into but I thought there would be something charming about this one but just in case I prepared myself with Alexander Hammid’s The Private Life of a Cat. The short itself follows the adventures of two cats as they fall in love, mate, take care of their kids, and watch them grow up. It’s incredibly cute and the narration (credited as being written by Hammid’s wife, the immortal Maya Deren), provides a nice comforting tour into the nature of cats with nice little poetic touches. A good watch though not as good as some of his wife, Maya Deren’s, filmography.
Then I watched Felidae. Why did I watch this? I loved this but I knew of it’s reputation and I still chose to watch it and well, it sure isn’t forgettable. First thing’s first, the cast for this film is surprisingly star studded for a dub of a German animated film containing Cary Elwes, Michael Madsen, Christopher Plummer, Michael Ironside, and John Hurt (!) and their vocal talent delivers nicely in this film, it gives it a pulp novel sort of vibe, not too serious but still playing a somewhat elegant and solid presence. The animation/director is excellent, especially carrying a strong use of shadows and lighting with excellent facial expressions and designs for each character. As for the writing, well, umm, well, it’s not fitting with my initial idea for this project but it was certainly good. It moves with this slow methodical pace but yet completely chaotic in what is revealed while all the while building and setting up character dynamics, to let us care in some way about them, but as every good noir, things don’t stay good and even the end is treated not as a grand moment but as bittersweet moment as the snow appears not as a pure white but as a middling shade of blue. There was one death in particular that really shook me though for spoilers sake I won’t say anything except it happened at the end (there’s another one in the middle but I got more of a shock by the former one mentioned). The surrealist dreams are also very well put together and they give this sense of “What would happen if Fritz the Cat had a horrifying sequence of him going to hell?”, which to be fair, is most of the movie, but those scenes in particular really made me feel that way (this is a complaint by the way, those dream scenes rule). Lastly, this is a brutal film, like not just that it is gruesome (which it is), but that it exposes a harsh underbelly of life by exaggerating it (now I sound like my high school English teacher). Like I brought this up before but cats almost act like humans so it feels understandable to try and give them our worst aspects to highlight them, our greed, our hate, our superiority complexes, all that stuff. Also if you intend on getting any of the books this is based off, try avoiding giving any money to the author however you can, I don’t normally say this but the author is most likely a Neo-Nazi, given his very “interesting” views.
Not wanting to end this on a downer I watched the Lumieres’ The Little Girl and Her Cat and it was cute, nothing else because it’s one minute, just it’s cute.

December 17thShow

The Russians Are Meowing, The Russians Are Meowing: I am a Soviet descendant, my family was born under a Soviet state and as a result I decided to honor my fallen land by watching 2 films from my parents’ (and by extension mine’s) childhoods. I started off with the 1957 animated film, The Adventures of Borsalino. First though, a lot of people say this is a ripoff of Pinocchio which, I want to clarify, isn’t true. Borsalino was created through a Russian translation of Pinocchio, where he became a beloved cultural icon in his own right. So this is basically Pinocchio with a few changes, most notably the golden key which appears in every adaptation of Pinocchio and as a result you get the plot with some diversions, the most famous being Pierrot, an absolute icon of Russian culture, although mostly from his ‘76 version. Pierrot is undoubtedly the best character in all of Russia’s children films, immaculate design, a sweetheart, a singer, a loyal friend and an all around great guy. If I wasn’t a straight guy, growing up I might have crushed hard on Pierrot. But he’s not the only great part of Borsalino, Borsalino himself is a charming little joyful kid who’s mischievous and kooky. The supporting cast is also excellent with the standout being a dog who’s madly in love with a woman (sounds worse when I say it then it is), he’s just lovely. It’s just lovely but not as good as the other 2 major Soviet productions of the Borsalino, if you want to watch one, just watch the ‘76 version, Pierrot is better in that one anyways.
Then afterwards I watched the Russian musical short, Cat’s House, Кошкин дом (A.K.A. The Cat’s House), it watched this without any subtitles expecting my limited knowledge of Russian to at least carry me, well it worked, sort of. I had some grasp about what was going on, especially helped by the animation, but as for exact dialogue I can’t say much, even if I got some of the dialogue based jokes. But based on what I did understand, it’s good, nothing revolutionary but as a children’s film, it works, and my goodness did the nostalgia hit me good, so that may be why I liked it more than I should have.

December 18thShow

Breakfast at Tiffany’s:
Tiffany’s is a great little film if I’m being honest, every actor is utterly captivating (except Mickey Rooney, like seriously, why did he have to wear yellowface, a white guy would have worked too with a couple slight changes), the romance is well paced and lovely, the comedy setpieces like Hepburn’s party are wonderfully crafted, the emotions hit hard, and it laid the groundwork for every rom-com to follow from the famous opening to the heartwarming ending. Breakfast at Tiffany’s is, without sarcasm and with the most genuine intent possible, iconic. It’s a cozy cabin after a buzzling city, a familiar and nice film after this mad dash of relatively obscure to the downright forgotten.

December 19thShow

Rhubarb:
Another classic Hollywood comedy, though much less well known than Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Rhubarb is the last of it’s breed, a genuine screwball comedy hit. It carries the spirit of a Lubitsch through it’s charm and especially his setups and payoffs, best being the sneezing of Ray Milliand’s (who is quite charming in this) fiancee to Rhubarb which is slowly built up through what at first appears to be a running gag into something far more than what first appears to be happening. And honestly that could be the whole film, starting off as an eccentric comedy about a millionaire and his cat after several attempts to catch it from a golf course, to a sports film with the baseball players and that lucky cat Rhubarb (which itself is a baseball term), to a courtroom drama, before ending with a gangster story while we also get the tale of 2 romantics separated by one’s cat allergy. That gangster story especially reminded me of Ball of Fire which also deviated into a gangster wrapped comedy, though Ball of Fire does it with more grace. And that is probably the main problem with the story, the first half is wonderfully paced but once we get into the courthouse part of the affair, well it’s interesting and there’s nice moments, but it feels like padding and frankly if you took that out and put the gangster plot after the team will play against New York, it would feel more smooth and you still get that same payoffs except having to explain differently, that Milland’s fiance is… oh wait excuse me I’m getting into spoilers but either do that or better yet, have them try better integrating the courthouse stuff into the gangster subplot or add a small thing like a Headline saying Media Coverage of Trial Increases Brooklyn’s Trustworthiness and/or Millions Put on Brooklyn After Trial and then clearly incorporate it into a transition before keeping the movie the same, something like that would have made it feel a bit more connected. I don’t know though I’m no writer and everything in those parts (even the Courthouse scenes) are sharply written and well put together, I merely wish it felt less loose in those two parts specifically. Check it out though, I am probably wrong with my criticisms in some way and if so, please tell me off, film isn’t just one man’s opinions, sometimes there’s a whole baseball team full of them.

December 20thShow

Homeward Bound:
There’s a sense of love in Homeward Bound that I’ve rarely seen in any other film. The plot is simple, 2 dogs and a cat go out to find their family after a misunderstanding over the family staying 2 weeks instead of 1, traversing through dangerous obstacles and going on a wild ride. And that’s really it, there are no villains, no world-ending threats, but yet, it still feels like there are stakes because finding their family is what matters to the pets because they love them. And because of that goal, they’ll do nothing to stop and nothing will prevent them. I won’t say I didn’t tear up a bit at the end, because I did and it’s this moment of utter catharsis after everything that’s happened. Every injury, sidetrack, bear, and misdirection leading to that ending and well, I’m a sap now I guess. This is more a dog movie than a cat movie though so even if Sally Field’s Sassy is wonderful, if you want to try this challenge, maybe don’t do this one.

December 21stShow

The Shadow of the Cat:
This certainly was fun and fine but nothing much more. This is an early Hammer film and as someone who is most acquainted with the later more colorful films (in more ways than one) so this worked as a bit of a surprise. I think that the reason I liked this so much is because this plot is one that sounds so absurd, a cat witnessing a murder and killing the murderers, but it’s played so straight that you just accept the plot as it is and in turn, it plays as a solid little tale of feline fear and vengeance. The acting is in part responsible for this, it’s really well done and gives it a sophistication that feels as if they were a Poe adaptation or something of that nature. The atmosphere absolutely shines in this despite it’s daylight setting, making use of things like muddy swamps or dark basements to create an eerie tone. And the night scenes are also brimming with atmosphere. But besides those things, it’s really just fine, it doesn’t reach the heights of the Terence Fisher films for Hammer or the Quatermass films, but it works just fine for what it intends to be. And that’s really that. Probably the best cat-centric mystery films I’ve seen, but that isn’t saying much.

December 22ndShow

Whisper of the Heart:

I have said this too many times but this time, this time I really mean it, this is the greatest movie I’ve seen in this marathon. To articulate any of my feelings right now, especially with my current skill level, is near impossible but I’ll try. There’s a deep humanity in Miyazaki’s films, the people you see, despite being 2-D and fictional, are so real and alive that you fall into their world with open arms. This is a film about creativity, the struggle to achieve something even if it doesn’t work out completely as you hoped for, which believe me is something I’m very familiar with. This is a film about love, the struggle to connect and say what you want to people you love but also true relationships and all that they entail. This is a film about stories, both the real and the imaginary. This is a film about relatively nothing at first, but the more you watch, the more it’s clear that this is a film about everything. This is a film about life and all the wonder that it brings.

December 23rdShow

The Cat and the Canary:
This is yet another old dark cat, sorry old dark house movie and this just might be my favorite of them. The atmosphere as expected is helmed wonderfully by that wonderful cinematographer, Charles Lang. The set pieces are well done and evoke suspense which you wouldn’t really expect from a Bob Hope vehicle. Oh speaking of that, you know what this has that the other Universal cat creepers don’t? The answer is humor. Well that’s not entirely true, I laughed at some moments in The Cat Creeps but this was genuinely a funny film without having to resort to kookiness to try and lighten the mood (like another film here). Best part is there is a genuine reason for Hope’s wisecracks besides he’s a nut, it’s because he is playing an actor who starred in old murder mystery cat films like this one and who, you could say, uses humor since he’s so comfortable using it in situations almost exactly like this one. And that aspect not only gives this film more imagination than other films of this nature but also uses that aspect to play up the tropes that films like this usually have without resorting to winks and nudges. The characters themselves are also wonderful, each one feels like they are different people who are all wrapped in this mystery with defining traits for each of them and Paulette Goddard is spectacular in this too, matching odds with Bob Hope and playing off him delightfully. All in all, a wonderful film and has surpassed The Shadow of the Cat as the best old dark cat film.

December 24thShow

The Curse of the Cat People:

Cat People is one of my favorite horror films of all time and one of the main reasons is because of how well-characterized every character was in that film and that there’s this idea of what is real and what isn’t. In fact you could say that about all of Val Lewton’s RKO “horrors”, they’re not horrors, they’re dramas. Case in point: Curse of the Cat People. I want to make one thing very clear, this is not a horror, there is suspense and some supernatural stuff but I’m surprised how calm and quiet it is, there’s only one death in this entire movie and rather than it being horrifying, it’s sad and somber. I imagine this is in part due to this being a more personal film than some of the other films from his RKO “horrors”, there’s a strong sympathy to the women in this film because Lewton grew up around a bunch of women and Amy is a wonderful example of that, she is characterized by her innocence. She is not sinister but a sweet girl who just doesn’t really understand the world and has a hard time making friends (something that really connected with me), so the goal isn’t escape the horror, it’s to learn to accept that she does need to change and accept loss (as seen in 2 specific moments towards the final 20 minutes) along with the idea that the world isn’t as innocent as she’d like to think. And on that note, that is a major theme in this story, to learn to change and grow and accept especially with Oliver Reed (no relation) and Irena’s death from the first movie as he tries to hide his sadness deep inside, or the woman taking care of the old actress will never have truly been loved by her (it’s never really clear if she is her daughter so that part is up to interpretation). And because of that, the film emerges with a warm touch and almost comforting the viewer in some way, we’ve all had past grievances we choose to keep or maybe there’s moments right now that still make us cry but that’s alright, the film tells us, you just have to let go at some point before you go too far. Also the reason this is my penultimate film is because this takes place during the Christmas season and my god is the cinematography outside in the snow, beautiful especially in the use of whites. This might have actually been a pretty good ending, it takes place on Christmas and you could say that the film’s message could say that this series is done and that it’s time to move on, but alas there’s one more film to go (plus a short too).

December 25thShow

That’s a Wrap:
And after 25 days, I’ve done it, I’ve watched at least one feature film (minus the 3rd with the short but that’s not important) for every day since December 1st, each of them involving a cat. So to celebrate I grabbed my big Pure Leaf Sweet Tea bottle, a sizable mug, my Christmas socks and some casual attire and put on 2 nice little favorites.
A Kitten for Hitler might have been Ken Russell’s swan song had he not appeared in Celebrity Big Brother 5 that same year, trying to keep his bitches happy while snoring up a storm (I know this was released before Kitten, just wanted an excuse to bring it up). Ken at this point in his life was now Persona non grata in the major filmmaking industry so Ken started rounding up his buddies and making little home movies, the most famous being The Fall of the Louse of Usher. A Kitten for Hitler is no exception and you can mock it all you want for it’s very blunt greenscreen or it’s crass attitude but I loved this. It’s Ken Russell trying to push the limits of what can be shown (iirc this was done as a bet/challenge to see if he could make a film so controversial he’d like it banned), but it never really comes off as offensive. There the offensive parts are not through mocking the Jews but with giving Hitler a nice side upon seeing the present and even then the film takes the time to make fun of him (one especially funny moment is when Hitler kisses his mistress and the mistress has his mustache over her mouth). Also one last thing of note, I love that this is presented as an 8 minute fake trailer, it gives it a bit of a charm to it and the little cat stuffed animal as the Comedy Box equivalent to the MGM lion was cute.
Then lastly I pulled out a film that might be my favorite out of all of these. There’s like no other competition for my favorite even if it doesn’t technically have any real cats (one character is named Kitty though), Hellzapoppin’. This in particular feels like a culmination of this project. It carries the imagination of the Japanese films; the musical styles of Cats Don’t Dance (the most famous scene from this is actually pretty similar to one in that actually); the ensemble stylings with noted character actors like of the old dark cat (house) movies (Hugh Herbert was in this and The Black Cat); the magic of Bell, Book, and Candle; the love triangle of rom-coms like Breakfast at Tiffany’s; and the anarchic joy of The Cassandra Cat. From the opening saying any similarity between this and a motion picture is purely coincidental leading to a hellish (literally) comedy nightmare of insanity and sight/verbal humor to the insane climax of the finished play, the film grabs you by the jugular, tosses you around like a rag doll, and throws into the movie equivalent of an active war zone before putting into the false safety of a plot before breaking it down like a wrecking ball of innocent fury. In fact the plot is actually a story inside of a story about making a story being presented by a small story with the projector and his date. In this world, everyone is the straight man but no one is, think of Abbott and Costello except both are absolutely insane, though in the world of Hellzapoppin’, insanity is normality. But ultimately the chaos is not why I love Hellzapoppin’, it’s that there’s a sense of joy to it. If you’re familiar with this film chances are you know it from the 5 minute jazz swing tune and that scene is wonderful not because it doesn’t have the chaos of the rest of the film but because it creates a sense of togetherness, what starts off as a small couple of piano notes transforms into this giant spectacle of instrument players and dancers connected by the music even if their professions and work is different from each other’s and that just, I don’t know, gives me a sense of joy. Doing a bit of research, apparently the director, H.C. Potter wanted to try and make the experience more interactive and even tried to film an ending where Olsen and Johnson show up at the actual premiere of their film which just shows how passionate he (and by extension, everyone else) was with this film and that passion is felt enormously. Hellzapoppin’ is an utterly unique experience and maybe the oddest Hollywood film ever greenlit, not that I’m complaining of course.

ConclusionShow

I don’t really have much to say except I can now say I’m a cat person because I’ve had enough cats for a while. Nah I’m just joking but I think this is more than enough cat movies for any singular person in one month so I’m gonna sit back and relax by watching The Apartment and Mr. Soft Touch & Never Say Goodbye before that.

[Mr Sausage]

Mr. Sausage your request has been taken but unfortunately I knew what you were doing bringing up a Fulci so alas, I paired it up with a Hugh Herbert comedy afterwards.11

I wasn't trying to pull one over on you. Literally just said the cat films I could think of.

[TechnicolorAcid]

I know, just a little joking remark from me to you, no ill intent was intended. Plus it was a good recommendation since I had more fun with it than I did with the actual comedy on that double feature so thanks.

[Mr Sausage]

I’m glad you enjoyed it at least! I don’t remember being that into it—Fulci’s never done much for me—but I think I found more charms in it than I tend to with him. Maybe should give it a rewatch.

Merry Catmas!