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Quick LinksVal Lewton Revolutionized Low-Budget Horror MoviemakingThe Curse of the Cat People Is One of Cinema's Best Films About Childhood ImaginationGenerational Trauma Is a Key Theme in The Curse of the Cat People

Directed by Gunther von Fritsch and Robert Wise, The Curse of the Cat People is an underrated 1944 psychological supernatural horror thriller that deserves to rank alongside the greatest sequels in cinema history. The Curse of the Cat People was one of eleven legendary B movies Val Lewton produced for Rko Pictures between 1942 and 1946. Lewton's historic run as a producer began in 1942 with Cat People, a low-budget B horror movie that became a surprise box office hit. Looking to capitalize on Cat People's commercial success, Rko Pictures commissioned Lewton to produce a sequel. While many sequels fall victim to being an inferior, copy-and-paste version of their predecessor, Lewton ensured that The Curse of the Cat People was...

After The Seventh Victim‘s disappointing returns, Val Lewton and Rko clashed over their next project. Lewton wanted a comedy, provisionally titled The Amorous Ghost, as a change of pace; studio boss Sid Rogell, Lewton’s bete noir, insisted on a sequel to Cat People, which Lewton resisted. Then Rko suggested a Universal-style monster rally, They Creep By Night, reuniting villains from past Lewton pictures. Charles Koerner rescued Lewton from this absurd prospect by pitching a maritime thriller. “Call it The Ghost Ship,” Koerner ordered. Lewton also scored a big, though past-his-prime star in Richard Dix, an Oscar nominee for Cimarron (1931).

The result is equal parts The Sea Wolf and M, with a dash of Edgar Allan Poe. Tom Miriam signs on as third officer on the ill-starred freighter Altair, ruled by Captain Stone (Richard Dix). At first Stone merely seems strict, but his homilies about authority take on a...