The Cat Creature
A stolen amulet unleashes an ancient cat goddess's curse.
The Cat Creature, a 1973 American TV horror film, was produced by Douglas S. Cramer and directed by Curtis Harrington. Robert Bloch wrote the teleplay, which pays homage to Val Lewton’s 1940s horror films. The cast includes Meredith Baxter, David Hedison, and Gale Sondergaard. It aired on December 11, 1973, as an ABC Movie of the Week.
Quick Facts
- Genre
- Horror
- Teleplay
- Robert Bloch
- Story
- Douglas S. Cramer
- Wilfred Lloyd Baumes
- Robert Bloch
- Director
- Curtis Harrington
- Starring
- Meredith Baxter
- David Hedison
- Gale Sondergaard
- Music
- Leonard Rosenman
- Country
- United States
- Language
- English
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Late one evening, appraiser Frank Lucas discovers a sarcophagus in a deceased client's basement holding a mummy with a gold amulet featuring a cat's head and emerald eyes. While Lucas is out of the room, Joe Sung steals the amulet, unleashing a curse from a cat goddess. Lucas is attacked and clawed to death by a black feline that howls like a jackal. Sung later tries to pawn the amulet at The Sorcerer's Shop, but proprietress Hester Black throws him out. The theft triggers a chain of killings involving Black, Marco, Edmonds, Sung, salesgirl Rena Carter, and a homicidal black cat with glowing green eyes.
Reception
Gale Sondergaard, once known as the Spider Woman, plays a cat goddess who kills people to get a golden amulet. Kent Smith, who appeared in the 1942 film Cat People and its sequel, has a brief role. The cast also includes David Hedison, Stuart Whitman, Keye Luke, John Carradine, and Peter Lorre, Jr., who shows up in one scene with a knife in his back. Curtis Harrington directed. The film tries to recreate the mood of Val Lewton’s 1940s horror, but it feels weak, like a kitten’s bite instead of a jungle predator. Sondergaard had only acted in one movie since 1949 because of the Communist blacklist. John Carradine, Keye Luke, Kent Smith, and John Abbott all appear, reminding viewers of classic B-movies.
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