The Cat and the Canary (1927)
Rich old Cyrus West's relatives are waiting for him to die so they can inherit. But he stipulates that his will be read 20 years after his death. On the appointed day his expectant heirs arrive at his brooding mansion. The will is read and it turns out that Annabelle West, the only heir with his name left, inherits, if she is deemed sane. If she isn't, the money and some diamonds go to someone else, whose name is in a sealed envelope. Before he can reveal the identity of her successor to Annabelle, Mr. Crosby, the lawyer, disappears. The first in a series of mysterious events, some of which point to Annabelle in fact being unstable.
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Sadly Over-hyped
Fresh and Exciting
When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.
It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.
You might think that you cannot take a horror movie with comedy features serious but here they are welcome in what otherwise would be a pretty standard and perhaps tedious film about a house that might be haunted and where mysterious events happen. Comparing this one to the shorter Midnight Faces which has the same premise is like day and night. The Cat and the Canary beats it in every way. The Cat and the Canary starts of with some impressive visuals about the deceased uncle's feelings about his relatives portrayed in a very symbolic way with cats. A few times we see some nice special effects, impressive for its time. The eeriness of the dark mansion remains constant for start to end. The cast is really versatile and fitting with in the starring roles Laura La Plante as the lucky heir Annabelle West, Creighton Hale as the first not so brave and therefore unintentionally funny Paul Jones and of course Flora Finch as aunt Susan whose hysteric talking would drive any sane person crazy (perfect example is when she is picked up by the milkman and drives him nuts with her chattering about ghosts). Honorable mention to Martha Mattox as housekeeper Mammy Pleasant (that name in itself is the biggest paradox when you see her face) whose presence alone does anyone expect there is something scary about the whole thing. And of course the doctor examining Annabelle looked creepy too. Simple but effective story with wonderful characters.
When a lawyer arrives at the estate of a recently-deceased client for a reading of the will, he finds that there's a living moth inside the safe he sealed twenty years earlier. Clearly, something's not quite right in THE CAT AND THE CANARY. The ensuing attempts by various and sundry people to gain possession of the dead man's riches (by legally proving that the heiress is insane) leads to some classic Horror Movie moments (and images ingrained in many minds long ago by Forrest J. Ackerman's FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND)- moments that have been "re-imagined" a million times since. There's also a Harold Lloyd look-alike who has perhaps the best line in the movie. "Don't interrupt me," he says at one point: "I think I'm thinking." Besides these assets, THE CAT AND THE CANARY offers some amazingly MODERN filmmaking techniques (not to mention the greatest number of dissolves and super-impositions I think I've ever seen). It's called a classic for a reason.
This is one of those must-see-at-least-once haunted house films, being one of the originals. I've seen it more than a few times. It took me years to track it down on VHS, nowadays it seems everywhere on digital platforms. It was very well done, a very pleasant comedy and well worth while and yet imho is nowhere near as good as the 1939 remake, that is if comparisons between silents and talkies are permitted. To me it's the same story therefore the two are comparable, although the 1979 version is probably best utterly forgotten if not completely forgivable for being such a time waster.Various quirky guests assemble at huge spooky mansion at midnight exactly 20 years after the death of their eccentric relative Cyrus West to hear the reading of his Will and who gets his money. It always struck me as odd that the greedy relatives didn't initially contest the bizarre rule, after all some of them might have joined him Upstairs in the intervening 2 decades! Creighton Hale and Laura La Plante played the lead characters of Paul and Annabelle excellently but unfortunately without the same sparkle Bob Hope and Paulette Godard had when playing Wally and Joyce 12 years later. However, the 1927 version had some nifty camera-work, inventive intertitles, some witty moments (especially Aunt Susan encountering the wide eyed Paul under her bed!) and nice sets with a lovely atmosphere that all still manages to suck you completely into the plot. I would add that the version I just saw ran 93 minutes with a rather stale soundtrack, I thought the tape I watched in the '90's was more sympathetic at 126 minutes long - there's apparently a wide range of versions now available on DVD so a little care in choosing seems required. As I'm still searching for the Perfect Copy this applies to me too!All in all an enjoyable and essential silent film to see even if you don't like the genre; if you do then I would particularly recommend the remake as one of the best films ever made.
I had seen The Cat and the Canary several times before I sat down to watch the Kino transfer. It has amazing clarity, a beautifully appropriate score, and does more than ample justice to one of the cornerstones of the silent era and the horror genre respectively. The story is simple enough: a wealthy man dies leaving his money to an heir detailed in a sealed envelope for all to see years after his death. We are introduced to the main star of the film early on - the eerie, creepy, web-strewn house. A house filled with long-flowing drapes, creaky(we must imagine) steps, mazes of twisting hallways, a series of hidden compartments and passageways all over, and the obligatory servant that hangs on to her job years after her employer has passed away. Director Paul Leni knows how to set the mood and make atmosphere reign supreme as his camera lens moves to shadows and light with the greatest of ease. The acting complements the atmosphere with great turns really by all involved. Tully Marshall, though in a small role, makes more impact with his little screen time than other actors would be capable of doing. Martha Mattox, as Mammy Pleasant of all names, is exceedingly creepy and effective as the old maid of the manse. Beautiful Laura LaPlante is the heiress who must spend a night amidst jealous, vengeful, greedy relatives. LaPlante has an exquisite smile and grace about her and effectively can go from light horror to light comedy. But Leni makes more than just a horror film here with Creighton Hale as Paul Jones, LaPlante's cousin and love interest. With Hale Leni relies heavily on mixing horror and atmosphere with broad light comedy. Hale, with his Harold Lloyd glasses and look, really is quite amusing as a bungling, easily frightened man who gets to relive his adolescent crush. The other actors are just dandy(seems to work in a review for a film this old) and the killer is not terribly hard to figure out - but that is secondary to the mood, tension, pace, and characterizations that lead to his/her unveiling. The Kino print is really just gorgeous. The music is just right and the title cards are perfect. Two scenes in particular stand out for me as classic Leni: One, Mattox, with candle in hand walking down a corridor with a row of windows draped and blowing as the winds blows indiscriminately and two, Tully Marshall about to read the name of the heir should LaPlante be proved to be crazy. Wonderfully shot! An ageless classic of the silent cinema for sure.