The Cat and the Canary (1978) Reviews

• Old warhorse still has legs

  heedarmy2001-01-23

  This old theatrical warhorse gets another outing in what is (to date) the only colour version of a classic play. There are some pleasantly swish performances from a good cast and neat direction from Metzger. Film takes a while to get going but the last reel packs in the action. Wilfred Hyde-White's appearance on film is a nice touch and he even gets to "host" the end credits. But the best moment is Edward Fox's spectacular entrance and his scene-stealing thereafter : a moment to treasure, especially his delivery of the line "We're just up the road"! (It'll make sense when you watch it).

• Very suspenseful, fun thriller

  Geoff-211999-07-09

  I recently saw this on video, and let me say it is one of the best thrillers I have ever seen! Its got chills, some laughs, spooky atmosphere, and Pussy Galore! I mean, it has Honor Blackman, who played Pussy Galore in Goldfinger. She is wonderfully twisted in this. The story is rather simple. The relatives of a dead millionaire are called to his mansion on the 20th anniversary of his death. Via 8 mm film, the dead man names his heir to the assembled group. The sole heir must spend the night in the house with the group and be deemed sane the next morning. To add to the jealousy of the losers and the creepy house, the local insane asylum curator drops by to say a homicidal maniac has escaped and is hiding out in the area. All these things add up to a great story and climax. I really liked the clever way the end credits are displayed too. I gave this 9 out of 10. Truly enjoyable.

• Cat got your fortune?

  lost-in-limbo2008-08-10

  1979 saw the reworking of the 1922 silent horror benchmark 'Nosferatu' by famed director Werner Herzog, and on the other end of scale to follow that up we see another (there's a few, but this was a British) film adaptation (inspired by John Willard's play) of the 1928 silent murder mystery 'The Cat and the Canary' by kitsch soft-porn director Radley Metzger. I haven't seen any seen of the other versions, so I don't know how close it was to them, but I found this effort to be a hot and cold fable. A wonderful star-studded cast including Honor Blackman, Olivia Hussey, Edward Fox, Carol Lynley, Daniel Massey, Wendy Hiller, Beatrix Lehmann and delightfully riveting cameo part by Wilfrid Hyde White lend strongly to the theatrical and eccentric comic styling that Metzger opts for. The offbeat interplay and rapports between the actors were authentically drilled and sprucely delivered. The isolated mansion comes into its own with its baroque etched details that create character with its shadowy interiors, creaky sounds, flickering lights, various rooms and secret passages. A stormy backdrop with the side-splitting thunder was the tip of it. Material-wise it's an often told, but twisted and cunning tale of mystery, murder, corruption, greed and insanity with a wicked sense of humour underlining it. The thick script is talky with many lyrical exchanges and goes about things in a slow-tempo. It takes a good hour to really kick into gear and this can make it feel a little too sluggish, as some urgency and suspense could've gone done much more for the beginning set-up. Nonetheless the edgy tension effectively builds and eeriness showers the air towards the latter end, but it never feels like enough by the end. Steven Cagen's music score is atmospherically good, the art direction is polished, photography placement is crisply crafty and Metzger directs with sophistication. One thing that did strike me was how the film ends with its revelation on who's doing the murderous acts and somehow it had me thinking did this have an influence of Wes Craven's 'Scream (1996)'? It's more about the way the killers in both films go about setting things in motion and then presenting themselves to their desirable object.

• Watch out! There's a cat on the loose

  skottyrock2002-01-31

  A family gathers at Glencliff Manor, their deceased uncle's mansion in England, for the reading of his will - 20 years after his death! It's a typically dark, wet and thundery night in 1934......the perfect weather for a will reading......and a murder (or two). For it also happens to be the same night an escaped, murderous mental patient, with a penchant for all things feline, sneaks in (via a catflap - sorry, couldn't resist) to dry off, lick his fur clean......and sharpen his claws! The family remains unaware of the cat's presence inside the mansion until an anxious mental hospital doctor, searching every nook and cranny for the cat, smashes through a ground floor window brandishing a gun. He urges the family to lock themselves into their rooms and wait for morning. But the cat attacks. And he breaks a nail...er, a claw or two in the process. Headlined by Honor Blackman, GOLDFINGER's Pussy Galore, and Carol Lynley, THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE's onboard singer extraordinaire - the latter having mastered an English accent for this role (Funny! When I was younger I thought Carol Lynley WAS English!) - CAT AND THE CANARY weaves thrills, murder, biting wit and choice dialogue into one satisfying hour and a half or so. Highly recommended.

• An enjoyable misfire.

  dbborroughs2004-07-05

  This film version of greedy relatives gathering for the reading of a will has been crucified in some corners as a pale shadow of the original, or if not the original the Bob Hope version. While certainly no classic this is a fun retelling of the story that works because the cast is so enjoyable to watch and because the old story works even if its done half way decently. This was the first version of the story that I ever saw. Endless reruns on HBO years ago have burned portions of this film into my mind, but I didn't mind since the film was just a good time passer. No, its not perfect. The 1970's retro feel that it has doesn't really work and makes the film feel like it doesn't belong anywhere. There were several films in the 1970's set in the 20's, 30's or 40's that suffered similar fates, particularly if they had any European connections. This is not the place to discuss it, but when you see this film you'll understand what I mean. And you should see this since its good but far from great. Is this the version if you can only see one go at the story? No, that would probably be the Bob Hope version, but if you want something for a rainy Sunday that won't tax the brain, this is it. 7 out of 10 on the pure enjoyment scale.