The Cat and the Canary

If drawing-room-type murder mysteries with a comic touch are your cup of tea, then you can't go wrong with this one. It's not as good as, say, "Murder by Death" or the best Agatha Christie adaptations, and there are some overly talky sequences that exist mainly to showcase the actors and lead nowhere. But it holds your interest, and has some very good acting, especially by Wilfrid Hyde-White in a most unusual cameo. (**1/2)

I'm not overly fond of seeing remakes of movies that I hold in high esteem, such as Paul Leni's excellent silent film "The Cat and the Canary" (1927), but the 1979 British remake (actually the fifth filming of John Willard's 1922 stage play) has such an impressive cast that it was hard for me to resist. And, as it turns out, this most recent incarnation is as fun as can be; an amusing and at times pretty darn scary updating. In what is a now-classic setup, a group of relatives convenes in England, at Glencliff Manor on a stormy night in 1934, to hear the reading of Cyrus West's will, while outside the house, an escaped homicidal maniac stalks the neighborhood. Here, West's attorney, Dame Wendy Hiller, screens the 20-year-old filmed testament of the old man (Wilfrid Hyde-White, whose grumpy recitation for his latter-day "leeches" and "bastards" easily steals the show) to a group of millionaire wanna-bes that includes yummy Carol Lynley, lesbian cousins Honor Blackman and Olivia Hussey, and American songwriter Michael Callan. Radley Metzger, in his sole horror outing in a career more known for various erotic entertainments, directs this film with style to spare, and his screenplay is clever and at times even sparkling. Callan gets the lion's share of the script's comical one-liners, and his quips regarding "putting on heirs," "where there's a will, there's a way" and "kissing cousins" are actually very funny. But don't get me wrong; despite the screenplay's cleverness, this "CATC" does dish out the scares, especially in the film's final 1/2 hour, when that maniac (who reminded me a bit of a bloodied-up Keith Richards, of all people!) gets into the house and things turn pretty nasty. All in all, a surprisingly well-done remake. Now...when is somebody finally gonna release a Region 1 DVD of the 1939 Bob Hope/Paulette Goddard "CATC"? That's what I want to know!

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).

This is a preposterous film. Olivia Hussey looked stunning although this alone does not make a film. I found it rather stupid, too slow and uneventful. Basically it is a thriller set in the thirties. It is not very thrilling. It is not violent. The secret passages around the house are cool. Best avoided really.

I fondly remember seeing this film in '79, and I was taken by it but this was long before I started demanding quality from the industry. I wish I hadn't seen it again, so I could have preserved the memory of the atmosphere and lightning and secret passageways, the reading of the will -- I could go on. But the sun rises. How can a film that boasts such talent lie on the floor so limply? There is no depth to any of the characters except the house keeper. Playboy to Doctor to Sportswoman to Pet girl to Instant heiress -- stick characters played by bored actors. The leading lady seemed miscast. Sorry, Miss Linley but the accent came and went so many times, it was distracting. Not that Miss Lynley got much help from Randy's adaption. To sum it up -- it was all there, all the spooky/ horror elements, but nothing jelled. There was no chemistry between anything... the movie lied there, the end offered nothing but who the killer was and even that was obvious from the onset. Yes. Yes. Very sad. Sometimes it's best to keep childhood memories in your mind's eye rather then try to relive the moment.......................