La marca de la pantera

Cat People (1982)

*** (out of 4)

Irena Gallier (Nastassja Kinski) arrives in New Orleans to visit her brother Paul (Malcolm McDowell) but soon falls for a man (John Heard) she meets at the local zoo. It doesn't take long for the young woman to realize that there's something not quite right with her or her brother and soon her sexual design brings something else out in her.

Paul Schrader's remake of the 1942 film really doesn't have too much in common with that Val Lewton production. I think Schrader and screenwriter Alan Ormsby made the right decision in not trying to just remake that film and instead taking on a different approach. That approach was like several other remakes from the 1980s in that it added up a notch of sexuality. CAT PEOPLE didn't get too much credit when it was released outside the full frontal Kinski but that's really too bad because the film itself is quite good.

I think Schrader did a very good job with the material and I thought he managed to milk the sexuality for everything it's worth as well as create a very interesting lead character. I thought the film did an extremely good job at the psychological stuff as the lead character is constantly wondering who she really is and the very also questions what we're actually seeing. The director managed to build up the psychological drama as well as the sexuality in the material. Some have argued that there weren't enough horror elements, which I can understand them saying that but even the original played with your mind more than actually showing you anything.

A major reason for the film's success is the performance of Kinski who is simply wonderful in the lead role. The film works because you can believe her as this sweet and innocent woman that we meet at the start of the film. She plays a virgin here and the actress makes you believe that as the innocence just leaps off the screen but she also handles the character once she begins to change. The supporting cast is also great with McDowell is especially believable in the role of the creepy brother. Both Heard and Annette O'Toole offer excellent support as does Ruby Dee and Ed Begley, Jr. in their small roles.

The sexuality of the film is certainly something that sets it apart as is the full frontal nudity from the lead actress. I'd argue that the film runs a bit too long as some editing might have helped but there are still plenty of effective scenes. Even the start inside the hotel room with the leopard was quite intense. Schrader's CAT PEOPLE has never really gotten the credit it deserves but it's a nice little gem.

Erotic thriller with Nastassja Kinski starring as a young female who's gone searching for her own, inner self. In many ways a remake of the 1942 original, but also in many ways not a remake - a film that stands its own ground, this has a quality of sexual awakening and excitement that the original didn't have. Fabulous music by Giorgio Moroder (also featured is David Bowie's hit-single "Putting Out the Fire") accompanies many of the bloody and sexually occupied scenes that hammers on like they belonged in a artsy-fartsy porn flick. Kinskis performance at the center is typically her: odd, tactless, awkward, outlandish and sensual - in other words, highly enjoyable. She's fantastically beautiful, and she moves through a New Orleans during the fall, shot by John Bailey. And even though the level of thrills ain't always sky-high, the film has a charm and atmosphere that makes it a interesting, stylish and sexy cult picture.

Like Joe D'Amato's "Buried Alive," this remake of "Cat People" is technically a love story with a tough horror exterior. Both aspects of these genres fit quite well to create an unconventional entertainment. The movie gets especially high mileage out of two inspired leads--Nastassia Kinski as the young, attractive virgin (she also looks like a more predatory version of Isabella Rossellini); and Malcolm McDowell, who still glows with all the playful malevolence he brought to "A Clockwork Orange," as her brother, who morphs into a panther when sexually aroused. In spite of an ill-defined supporting cast, Paul Schrader's assured direction, the bizarre script (by "Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things" star Alan Ormsby), those lush New Orleans locations, and the chemistry between Kinski and McDowell keep "Cat People" afloat. It's a sexually charged horror story told with a straight face, and it works.

7/10

Paul Schrader's version of Cat People is a movie that I've heard of, but never seen. After reading some of the reviews of the movie, I've decided to see on my own for the first time. I must say that I wasn't expecting a whole lot out of this movie because a lot of people who have seen it compared it to the original 1942 Val Lewton picture from RKO. Well, I was very impressed by this version of Cat People and I must say that it's a exceptionally well made, well acted psychological horror film.

Irena, (Nastassja Kinski), arrives in New Orleans, visiting her brother, Paul, (Malcolm McDowell), for the first time. As the movie begins, Schrader sets up the movie very well. Hundreds of years ago, the feline group of mysterious people, called the Cat People, have the ability to change into a black leopard after mating. Unknowable to Irena, Paul starts to develop a incestuous feeling toward her as in one scene, which is, one of the best scenes in the movie, he stalks her while she sleeps in his house for the first time.

Soon enough, Irena is given a job at the local zoo in New Orleans by Oliver Yates, (John Heard). Yates soon starts a relationship with Irena after he witnesses her watching a black leopard, roaming around its cage, milling for food. Irena doesn't tell Oliver about her family secret. Instead, the movie gets even better when Heard and Kinski start a relationship between the two while McDowell takes a turn of the worse, using his cat-like instinct to kill and prey on women, living in New Orleans.

Almost some of Paul Schrader's films walk a tightrope between sexual tensions. He never back away from that particular theme in Cat People. Schrader, as you may know, written the screenplay for Taxi Driver and also directed two feature films, Hardcore, which shares some of the same elements in this film and American Gigolo. His films are quite daring, but nevertheless, interesting and engaging.

Some people might look at this movie as a sleazy exploitation horror film. But, to the tell you the truth, it is not. This is a very good looking movie, with great cinematography, showcasing many colorful sets and sights in New Orleans. Some of the scenes are quite suspenseful, almost ranking up there with the Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock. The imagery that is used in this movie are very well shot and photographed. One scene that sums it up at all up is when Kinski witnesses a leopard, tearing out a zookeeper's arm. What makes that scene work is that Schrader cuts that with a shot of a pool of blood, running through Kinski's shoes and into a drain in the floor of the zoo. That's very well done, indeed. You can almost feel the darkness and mystery of the picture itself, thanks to the superb music score by Giorgio Moroder.

Nastassja Kinski, I think, steals the movie, away from John Heard and Malcolm McDowell. She is one of the most interesting and mysterious actresses I've ever seen. She provides the movie with a spice of eroticism that lights up the scenes. You can't talk your eyes off of her nor ignore her. She is really something in this movie. Unlike so many other female characters in horror movies, she gives Irena a mind of her own when she develops sexual feeling toward the two completely different men. That's very daring for a actress to do in the movies.

Cat People is a very scary horror film that's very well made by Paul Schrader and also scored very effectively by Giorgio Moroder. An very good movie for adults to see. ★★★ 1/2 3 1/2 stars.

Alan Ormsby scripted and Paul Schrader directed this 80s remake of the well-regarded 1942 Val Lewton production. Nastassja Kinski stars as Irena Gallier, who hooks up with her long-unseen brother Paul (Malcolm McDowell), who ends up making insane demands of her. You see, he's been kept aware of their heritage while she, still an innocent, has been in the dark on the subject. Meanwhile, a black panther rampages through the community, and Irena falls in love with Oliver Yates (a bland, but likeable John Heard), a zoo curator.

There are quite noticeable differences between the 1940s and 1980s renditions. Schrader is much more *explicit*, and takes the implications of the schlocky title literally, while the Lewton film was all about *suggestion*. The 1942 film ran a trim hour and 13 minutes, while this takes its time and runs close to two hours. This version is much more sexy and much more violent, with Schrader taking advantage of the big leaps in special effects technology.

It was a clever move to reset the story in New Orleans, with its incredible atmosphere and European feel. It lends a definite presence to "Cat People" '82, as does the haunting electronic score by Giorgio Moroder. And that theme song (music by Moroder, lyrics by David Bowie, and performed by Bowie) really kicks ass! One nice touch is the "cat person" p.o.v. devised by Robert Blalack, but we only see this for one sequence. Visually, the film is stunning, with "visual consultant" Ferdinando Scarfiotti and cinematographer John Bailey giving "Cat People" '82 a great look. Legendary matte artist Albert Whitlock also lends his expertise.

Schrader is at least wise enough to pay tribute to the suspense / shock sequence which any fan of the 1942 version remembers well. And it leads to a genuinely creepy confrontation between Kinski (who's since come to terms with her reality) and a vulnerable Annette O'Toole. Speaking of these two fine ladies, the film certainly does not lack for attractive women, as cult actress Lynn Lowry and the bubbly Tessa Richarde also turn up. The cast, overall, is good, with the stars given strong support by familiar faces (Ruby Dee, Ed Begley, Jr., John Larroquette) and top character actors (Scott Paulin, Frankie Faison (who's curiously dubbed by Albert Hall), Ray Wise, and Marco St. John all make appearances.) Berry Berenson, widow of Anthony Perkins, appears as the pool attendant.

Pretty enjoyable overall, but this viewer would advise against spending too much time fretting over the differences in the two versions. They're clearly playing to different audiences. Lovers of creature features will likely derive some entertainment from this.

Seven out of 10.