The Big Cat

Just after watching "The Big Cat", I thought to myself....'should I give this one a 5 or a 6?'....but the more and more I thought about it, the more I realized that I WANTED to like the film more....and that I don't think, in hindsight, that it even quite merits a 5.

"The Big Cat" is a coming of age story about a young man from Philadelphia who is trying to live in the west of 1932...but in some ways fails miserably until he ultimately proves himself. Danny (Lon McCallister) is out of place and often makes a nuisance of himself...yet, inexplicably, Tom and Doris (Preston Foster and Peggy Ann Garner) think he's marvelous. It's especially odd with Doris. Perhaps the pickings are slim out in the rural west, but she adores Danny the second she meets him....and it felt like the scriptwriter used this as a plot device to get us to pull for Danny. I, on the other hand, thought he was a bit of a screwup....and was not so impressed by him.

The story is about a cougar who is supposedly huge and very aggressive (the cat they used in the film appeared aggressive though not particularly large). Folks try to shoot it repeatedly without success (why? The cougar was not magical) until eventually the non-violent Danny rises to the occasion.

For me, Danny seemed like a very uncertain and rather wimpy guy and seeing his transformation at the seemed a bit farfetched. Not impossible...but hard to believe. Overall, a film that failed to connect with me....not a bad film but also not a particularly memorable one.

The movie's a quality outdoor production with engaging characters, solid script, and compelling scenery. So how did they get the cougar to go through his involved paces on apparent cue. The trainer or someone should get special credit since it's the cat's roaming that sparks the plot.

Spindly city lad McCallister arrives in Utah high country complete with suitcase and city suit. The question is what to make of him since the native woodsmen are a tough lot, from the men to the boys. But tough as they are, they can't seem to take out the predatory cat that's taking their stock. Turns out that McCallister's related to grouchy Foster, but how he'll manage to fit in with his city ways is the big question. Good thing that sweet little malt-shop Garner's there to flounce her dress at him. I like the way the thoughtful screenplay sets events in Depression era 1930's. Among other things, it explains why McCallister moves from ravaged city to high country unknown.

There's lots of outdoor action with no obvious sets. Note how noir director Karlson zeros in with close-ups to catch fleeting emotional moments, especially with Foster. Plus the chest butting between a blustering Foster and Tucker seems authentic as heck. But especially, there's that surprise about two-thirds way through that I sure wasn't expecting. I guess my only gripe amounts to a cougar without claws since Spike the dog is left unbloodied following his many tussles with the big cat. I guess the predator was understandably de-clawed before filming. Anyhow, I hope they gave the two critters a good payday for all their good work.

All in all, I can see the movie being produced as a boy's matinée. After all horse and dog movies were very popular during the latter '40's. Nonetheless, the film's quality is really much better than most. In my book, the result happily qualifies as a guys-of-all-ages creation that's as entertaining now as it was in '49.

Young Lon McCallister has trouble making ends meet in depression-era Philadelphia, so he returns to his dead mother's rural hometown. There, he becomes involved with the town folk's soap opera past, and catches the eye of Peggy Ann Garner. Due to drought, a menacing cougar is on the scene, making the outdoors very dangerous for the movie's characters...

There is a lot of fighting, with and without the cougar; but, that's not the film's most interesting feature. More interesting is that the movie features a few "child stars" past their "Hollywood Prime." On hand: Lon McCallister, from 1943's "Stage Door Canteen" and others, Peggy Ann Garner from 1945's "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" and others, Skip Homeier from 1944's "Tomorrow, the World" and others, and Gene Reynolds from 1938's "Boys Town" and others. Mr. Reynolds won huge fame later, as a producer ("M*A*S*H").

"The Big Cat" and the family dog win big acting honors.

**** The Big Cat (4/49) Phil Karlson ~ Lon McCallister, Peggy Ann Garner, Preston Foster, Forrest Tucker

Hi, Everyone, Lon McCallister shines as a newbie to the Utah drought stricken badlands of the 1930s. He has left his Eastern digs to get away from the Depression. When he meets Peggy Ann Garner he wishes he could get back to the squalor he left. Her jawbone never stops when she is on screen.

This movie is not great by any means, but it has some good moments. There are only a few human actors in this drama. The Big Cat does a good job of hitting his marks and growling. The best scenes by far are the fights. They seem real. Not just the human, but the animal fights are well done for 1949 when George Lucas was not available for a light show or animation.

In one fight scene between Preston Foster and Forrest Tucker you can almost feel the pain. Lon McCallister manages to get into a fight with his two cousins and they don't hold back. The cat has a scrape or two with a beautiful white dog and all of it is photographed to show how rough it is to survive in an environment with limited water and food and money sources.

Lon had a true screen presence that did not last long enough. If they quit using him because of his short stature, it was a loss to the fans. Skip Homeier is good as a rotten kid. Forrest Tucker is easy to dislike and he carries off the villain honors well here. Preston Foster does an excellent job of being a less than likable hero.

The best acting here is by Sara Haden as the mom of Peggy Ann Garner. She reminds me of my aunts of the 1950s. The worst singing in movie history might be the acappella ditty offered up by Irving Bacon as he approaches Lon McCallister who is walking down the road with his suitcase.

Lon McCallister and Skip Homeier both should have had long careers similar to Clint Eastwood and Lee Van Cleef. They had a good hero/villain chemistry. Somehow it just didn't happen.

When you watch this and see Forrest Tucker in 1949, you are seeing F Troop's Sgt. O'Rourke just 16 years before he became known for his comedic fights.

I recommend Stage Door Canteen with Lon McCallister (5'6") and Sunset Carson (6'4"). You will see the same boyish charm of McCallister 6 years before The Big Cat was made.

Tom Willett

The short-lived trans-Atlantic studio Eagle-Lion gave both the English and American moviegoers this Depression Era tale of a young man going to live in the wilds of Wyoming to escape the growing poverty and joblessness in Philadelphia where he's from. He's got an uncle there in Forrest Tucker, but goes to live with his mother's old boyfriend Preston Foster who has a place. Foster and Tucker aren't exactly best friends and living between both of them and trying to keep peace is preacher/farmer Irving Bacon and his wife Sarah Haden and their daughter Peggy Ann Garner. Of course she prefers McCallister to Tucker's oafish kids Skip Homeier and Gene Reynolds.

It's bad times like every where else. There's a drought, but also a mountain lion eating stock everywhere. The government has put a bounty on the cougar and Foster wants to collect it as he could use the money to jump start his ranch with significant timber holdings. Of course so could everyone else use the bounty money in those troubled times.

The film is in bad need of restoration to bring out the lush color location cinematography. But without any truly big names in the cast the film I'm sure is far down the pecking order. The cast gives some decent performances with McCallister and Garner a nice young couple the audience can identify with.

When it's restored I'm sure The Big Cat will be fine family viewing.