Cat Girl (1957)

Directed by Alfred Shaughnessy
Written by Lou Rusoff

Unrated

"Cat Girl" has been made available to watch for free online by AMCTV here!

I went into "Cat Girl" with meager expectations. What I found was a funny, quirky little tale of the macabre.

"Cat Girl" stars Barbara Shelley, a Hammer Horror regular, as Leonora Brandt, a newly married woman who is returning to the home of her uncle Edmund, who she hasn't seen for years. In spite of her uncle's insistence that she come alone, she brings her new husband Richard, and her friends Alan and Cathy. It is clear early on that Richard and Leonora married more for convenience than love. Richard can't keep his hands off of Cathy, and Leonora is obviously still in love with her ex-boyfriend Dr. Brian Marlowe, who the group runs into on their way to Leonora's uncle's house.

When they arrive, Leonora's uncle Edmund separates her from her friends and tells her of the "Brandt Curse", which has been passed down through the family since time immemorial. Edmund Brandt has reached the age at which he must die and the curse passes on to Leonora, his only living relative. The curse makes it's victim savage and wild, like an animal, and can project itself in the form of a deadly leopard. Leonora dismisses the tale as dementia on her uncle's part until he's brutally slain by a leopard. Leonora begins to feel the blood-lust as the curse takes effect.

 Leonora catches Richard and Cathy snogging in the woods and summarily summons her leopard pal to eat him. Confused and now husbandless, Leonora seeks out the assistance of her old crush Dr. Marlowe. She makes it clear that she'd like more than strictly professional treatment, but Brian Marlowe fends Leonora off valiantly as he has a wife himself. Leonora shows immediate and intense hatred for Marlowe's wife Dorothy. Marlowe sets Leonora up in an asylum for a few nights to monitor her. She begins to transform nightly into a cat-person, but cannot repeat the transformation when Marlowe is present, even to prove her sanity.

Marlowe decides that what Leonora needs is a day out with Dorothy. Why exactly he thinks sending a very jealous, mentally unstable woman out shopping with his wife is a good idea, I'll never know. It's worth it though, for the cat-and-mouse dynamic of Leonora and Dorothy. Dorothy is clearly terrified of Leonora, but tries admirably to hide her fear. One of my favorite scenes involves Leonora eating Dorothy's canary.

Leonora lures Dorothy into a bad neighborhood near the London docks, where she stalks her like a cat with a mouse. Dr. Marlowe hears a report of a leopard in the area and races to the docks. In a memorable ending, Marlowe slays the leopard by hitting it with his car just as it's about to attack Dorothy. The leopard's body disappears, and Leonora is found dead nearby.

I'd give "Cat Girl" a 7/10. There were several clever bits of dialogue that made me smile. The special effects were cheap yet serviceable. Barbara Shelley as Leonora was a special treat. While perhaps not the greatest actress, she plays this role with style and grace, slipping into the feline mentality with ease. All of her wardrobe shows off her sexy shoulders and back. She even moves like a cat. I am anxious to see more of her films.

Unfortunately, "Cat Girl" is as yet unavailable on DVD. Luckily, you can watch it for free right here:


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