THE NIGHT OF THE CAT (1973)
Directed by Jim Cinque
Something Weird DVD-R
Buy
it from Something Weird!
THE FILM
The apex of this film is not
the scene in which a sweaty, 300
pound man falls down a flight of
stairs. Incredible, but true!
"What do you think this is,
some kind of strawberry festival?!"
I have no idea what a "strawberry
festival" is, what it alludes
to, or what its implications may
hold. But, I know a thing or two
about fat guy jokes. The Night
Of The Cat, on the other hand,
is familiar with both. That is the
level of omniscience we are dealing
with.
The film grain. The blank living
rooms. The motel lounge combo soundtrack.
The over-enunciation. The Night
Of The Cat is, more than anything,
the most ripened of peaches in the
Eden of regional rarities. Shot
in South Carolina by one-time director
Jim Cinque, the film knows exactly
what it’s saying, yet at the
same time, knows nothing of what
it’s saying. Hilarious? Moody?
Suggestive? Bizarre? Naturally.
You see, Cat admires the
solemn desolation of Axe,
but realizes that those resources
are untouchable. So what’s
left? A female vigilante in a black
bodysuit, an ill-tempered Chico
Marx/Mel Brooks gangster, and some
big, naked stripper boobies. I can
respect that.
Hear Bev roar. When Bev’s
police-mole sister is run over by
evil pimp Mr. Demmins, the stuff
hits the fan. Revenge! The Cat is
born! Maybe. After two karate lessons,
a few sit-ups, and some ballerina
posturing, Bev dons a black wig
and mod suit. Then, she just kind
of shows up at someone’s house.
And gets punched in the face. By
Doug. Yes! It's Doug, the fat guy!
There he is! Doug wears rayon golf
shirts, sweats way too much, and
kills people. He works for Mr. Demmins,
who popularizes the stuff about
strawberry festivals. Then, the
inevitable: People repeatedly walk
into unlit rooms. The Cat is tied
to a bed while a group of gangsters
slice off her suit with a knife
for fifteen minutes. Chico/Mel throws
a shit-fit over his interior decoration
(with good reason). The Cat engages
in “fight scenes” which
inspire a new sense of hope about
this world. And, of course, Doug
falls down the stairs. I watched
that part twice.
Another
Son Of Sam is not a universally
accepted surrealist classic, but
I could watch it fifteen times in
a row, then wake up the next day
and watch it again. The Night
Of The Cat follows suit, but
ups the ante with a little of Crypt
Of Dark Secrets’s
comedic poise. Sure, downtime is
a given. But Cat jams its
75 minutes with gall and determination,
even if it doesn’t know why.
That’s what I like to see.
Random, meaningless inserts. Faulty-yet-cool
compositions. Unexplained jumps
in logic. Lots of sweet karate chops.
Plus, everything else. You really
can’t go wrong.
I felt a tinge of guilt for making
light of Doug's karate-chop induced
staircase accident. So, I watched
that scene a third time. Nope. Still
awesome.
AUDIO AND VIDEO
The Night Of The Cat is
a clear 'n' scratchy 1970s wonder.
Think Don't
Look In The Basement. Colors
are faded. Texture is thick. Sound
is hissed. Plus, we get an unexpected
boost; red, orange, and blue color
swatches pulse with psychedelic
glee at random during the first
half of the film. When they eventually
faded, my heart grew heavy.
EXTRAS
Hop on the titty-bus! Something
Weird fills up the DVD-R with four
nudie shorts -- "A Wild Night
At The Interlude" (15 minutes),
"Strange Sex Dreams" (5
minutes), "Nudes & Nuts"
(10 minutes), and "Naked Party"
(5 minutes of vintage Mahonization).
Hop off the titty-bus!
FINAL THOUGHTS
Behold the power of a woman scorned.
The Night Of The Cat is
a regional champeen; down ‘n’
dirty, surrealistic, and a big mess
of odd people and ridiculous situations.
It’ll get you through the
night. Now, go forth, eat strawberries,
and be happy. Doug would want it
that way.
— Joseph A. Ziemba, 07.19.07 |
Bev Belt
Cat Power
My favorite basement
Oh, Doug
|
