The Cat o' Nine Tails (1971)

I love this movie so much

Highly Overrated But Still Good

This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

The storyline feels a little thin and moth-eaten in parts but this sequel is plenty of fun.

"Cat O' Nine Tails" which was directed by none other than Dario Argento and followed on from the brilliance of "The Bird With The Crystal Plummage", this marks another highlight in his filmography and beautifully shot and fantastically produced, giving us another exciting chapter in his animal trilogy.Like the first part the plot again revolves around a murder mystery, and okay this doesn't quite have the style of his other works, but it's definitely an interesting effort. Plot wise this has all the usual giallo trappings with plenty of twists and turns and many red herrings. It starts off with a blind man Franco and his niece Lori who are out walking one night and overhear a conversation between two men in a parked car, Lori sees one but the other is hidden by darkness. Then that same evening a robbery occurs and later leads to several murders. So Franco and Lori enlist the help of a reporter Carlo to unravel the mystery.Like I said this may lack Dario's usual visual style, but it does pack a punch and keeps the viewer interested as the plot of the movie starts to unravel and events take place, and yes at times does become predictable, like when a character knows who the killer is, only to be bumped off straight away, but the deaths lack the usual gore set pieces, therefore not being as violent, but we do get a shot of the killer's eyes which was quite thrilling and well shot. The nine leads hence from the title is another interesting aspect of the movie, but kinda goes off point and all over the place and we are then introduced to sub plots that go nowhere, okay they can be passed off as red herrings, and then there's the eventual reveal of the killer, which wasn't as shocking as it should have been, but the chase and other plot points leading to it was quite intense though.The acting in this is pretty solid the relationship between Carlo and Franco was quite spot on and excellently played by Karl Malden and James Francisous, and both strike up a likable quality which makes you want them to succeed and of course Catherine Spaak was very glamorous and seductive in her role as Anna Terzi, even though her part was pretty small, but still memorable.All in all "Cat O' Nine Tails" isn't as bloody or sleazy as the usual giallo thrillers which isn't a bad thing and still has a good plot, decent acting and plenty of fun and a definite highlight in Dario's filmography.

Great Directors can Suffer from Self Comparison among the General Public and Ardent Fans. That is, a Particular Movie is Compared to the Auteur's Other Work and Not the Work of Others. Such has been the Case with this one, the Director's Second Film where He is Obviously Finding His Niche and has yet to Develop the Pure Style and Momentum of His Later Work.Fans are Divided on this one and if Viewed in Context with the Filmography one can see Why. The biggest Problem, if Someone is Looking for a Problem, is the Pacing. It Tends to Linger and Drag in Spots. It's also fairly Long and that Doesn't Help. But there are enough Scenes of Excellence and the Plot, while a bit Dense, is Intriguing.The Train Platform Scene, among others, are Unmistakably Argento and the Odd Music can Unsettle in Parts. James Franciscus and Karl Malden are better than OK and the Little Girl is more than Fine. Argento Newbies, Do Not Start Here! This one takes some Patience and the Director has said it is one of His Least Favorites, perhaps His Worst. But even His Worst is Better than Most. Definitely Worth a Watch even for Casual Fans and Argento Cultists will want to see it for an Example of His Early Work and for Comparison.

Il gatto a nove code (The Cat O' Nine Tails) is written and directed by Dario Argento. It stars Karl Malden, James Franciscus, Catherine Spaak, Horst Frank, Aldo Reggiani, Carlo Alighiero and Rada Rassimov. Music is by Ennio Morricone and cinematography by Erico Menczer.Blind puzzle solver Franco Arno (Malden) and newspaper man Carlo Giordani (Franciscus) team up to see if they can solve the mystery of the murders that are terrifying the city. With their own lives becoming increasingly in danger, and the lines of investigation splintered all over the place, the men are drawn to the mysterious Terzi Institute where geneticists are tampering with gene patterns…Argento doesn't like it and the fans are very much divided about the worth of it on the Argento curriculum vitae, yet The Cat O' Nine Tails is a delightfully entertaining oddity.The plot is labyrinthine with relish on top, spinning the viewers into the same convoluted investigative maze that Messrs Arno and Giordani find themselves in. In fact, it's near genius that it rarely makes sense under inspection, yet still there's a fascinating edge to the story, with its characterisations, sexual kinks and cruel murders, there's a power to the piece that rewards if you can just run with it, buy into Argento's Giallo singed world.With Malden turning in a great performance and Franciscus performing to a level nobody thought was in him, the lead characters really come to life. Add to that Morricone's creepy jazzy-garde fuelled score underlining the skew-whiff nature of the beast, and Menczer's photography tonally muted, tech credits are at one with the themes ticking away in the narrative, a narrative that has observation, ironically, on vision, sight and minds eye. While there's a couple of rug-pulls jostling for our attention just to keep things twisty.Then there is the director himself. The Cat O' Nine Tails finds him restrained compared to the excess of style over substance films that would dominate his oeuvre post release of The Cat. That's not to say there isn't style here, there's plenty as Argento dallies in POV, iris vision, and a nifty trick that gives the blind Arno "sight", further ensuring that the supposed handicapped character is the key player and potential saviour of all. A number of scenes are bursting at the seams with suspense, with a cemetery/mausoleum sequence top draw, for sure Argento is firmly getting in his stride here.It's not a gore movie, something which I personally think has led to some of Argento's fans giving the film the cold shoulder, but it's the tale (or tails of course) and characterisations that hold it up as being under valued. It's a Giallo whodunit flecked with sexual stings and no little amount style draped all over it. 7/10

Dario Argento's second feature is a solid Gaillo. Intrepid reporter James Franciscus, along with blind Karl Malden, tries to piece together who is behind a series of gruesome strangulations/ slashings...all seemingly connected to the work being done at a genetics lab. In what would become a hallmark of future Argento films, each murder is shown in graphic style. Argento creates a real sense of terror with this shocker. Franciscus is fine, if a bit bland but Malden gives truly believable performance. Catherine Spaak is also in it, sporting what has to be the tallest hairdo of anyone appearing in a horror film. The score by Ennio Morricone is a real treat.