Cat's Eye

"Cat's Eye" is another horror anthology movie that I found to be a nice companion piece with "Twilight Zone: The Movie". The thing that surprised me about this film is that it's a suspense comedy loaded with thrills galore and dark humor. Instead of four separate tales, "Cat's Eye" has just three, with a plucky tabby cat intervening through all three stories. And all three segments are directed by the same man (Lewis Teague). Stephen King wrote all three segments, with the first two segments based on short stories written by King. The first segment is a black comedy starring James Woods in some of the funniest acting that he's ever done as a man who wants to quit smoking. He goes to a place called Quitters, Inc. This clinic is run by a most unusual doctor played by comedian Alan King. Woods finds out quickly that their methods of trying to make smokers quit are odd. Very, very odd. This story isn't really scary but it's downright hilarious with Woods trying desperately to kick the habit. King is also very funny as the doc. This is a very good segment. But my favorite segment of "Cat's Eye" is the second one. The late Kenneth McMillan stars as a ruthless gambler who kidnaps a tennis player (Robert Hays from "Airplane!") who's been doing a little you-know-what on his wife. McMillan makes a strange bet with the tennis pro: walk on top of a short ledge around the gambler's high rise building 50-60 stories up. This segment is a scary one, with a few touches of black humor (even though this segment isn't as funny as the first one). King wrote the third segment directly for the screen. He wrote it for a then very young pre-teen Drew Barrymore (who a year earlier starred in King's "Firestarter"). Barrymore plays a little girl who takes that tabby cat in to live with her after the cat runs into her house. The reason why the cat ran into her house: kitty spotted a little tiny gremlin strolling into the place. The cat comes in and tries to save the day. This segment is silly but fun. All in all, "Cat's Eye" is an underrated gem. Funny, scary, and entertaining.

*** (out of four)

An adaption of three of Stephen King's short stories, the linking theme being a cat whose purpose later becomes apparent. The first story, 'Quitters Inc' (from the book 'Night Shift') involves the titular company who will go to extreme lengths to ensure their clients quit the weed. 'The Ledge' (also from 'Night Shift') concerns a risky walk around a tall building. Both these stories are entertaining and filled with excellent humor and strong characters.

By comparison the third story, which is the climax to the whole thing, is pretty slow and dull, the only real humor being provided by a miniature troll-like creature. But this anthology is worth seeing for the first two stories alone, which are masterpieces.

A trilogy of entertaining black humor. The first story is the strongest with the best stars. Alan King is deliciously evil as the head of Quitters, Inc., an anti-smoking group that uses mob tactics to stop its members from smoking. James Woods is excellent as Alan King's newest client.

The middle story is somewhat weaker entry starring Kenneth McMillan as a mobster who makes a lethal bet with Robert Hays after Hays steals his wife from him. A good story but not as good as the first.

The last story is the weakest entry of the three. An evil troll is out to steal Drew Barrymore's breath in this silly story. Our title cat tries to prevent that. The special effects for the troll doll are pretty good and the ending is funny. All-in-all an entertaining entry in the Stephen King collection of movies. A C+/B-

Cat's Eye (1985) was another film that was based upon the written work of Stephen King. Two of the three stories were taken form the short story collection NIGHT SHIFT. The movie is actually a decent watch and fans of the original source material will enjoy it as well as the average fan. An added bonus is the fact that the man himself wrote the screenplay!!

The movie is about a cat that has many adventures. Along it's way, an image of a girl keeps the cat going to it's destination. Along the way, he meets a man who has a smoking problem who'll go to great lengths to try and snuff his habit and the other is a broken down tennis player who's given a chance to redeem himself by completing a simple task. The cat's final destination is a girl who's tormented by a nasty little dude. WIll the cat affect those that cross it's past? What is that little dude that lives in the hole in the wall? All answers will be answered when you watch CAT"S EYE!

A good adaptation and a nice film. The only thing I didn't like was the silliness of the last episode. Some of the events in the final chapter come off as very contrived and clichéd. Other than that I had no problems. An enjoyable movie.

Recommended.

Lewis Teague's "Cat's Eye" contains three wry,humorous and creepy stories linked to the cat which roams from one tale to the next.First up there is my personal favourite "Quitters Inc.",the story of family man Mr Morrison(James Woods)who goes to a very unconventional place to help people quit smoking and has his life turned into a living hell.Secondly,there is "The Ledge",the tale of a washed-up tennis player who is forced to walk around the ledge of a hotel by a rich mobster after the tennis player steals his wife.And finally there is "The General",which involves a cat saving a little girl(Drew Barrymore)from a tiny goblin that comes in the night to take children's souls.The three stories are linked together by a cat that traverses from New York to Atlantic City to North Carolina."Cat's Eye" is more comic than horrifying.Still I enjoyed it very immensely and you should too,if you are a fan of Stephen King and his works.8 out of 10.