Movie Review: The Curse of the Cat People (1944) directed by Gunther V. Fritsch
Amy Reed (Ann Carter) lives in Tarrytown, New York, near Sleepy Hollow, with her ship designer father Oliver (Kent Smith) and draft creator mother Alice (Jane Randolph). Amy is a sensitive, imaginative little girl who doesn’t get along well with the other children in kindergarten. Though their lives seem happy enough, the house is shadowed by the memory of Oliver’s first wife, Irena (Simone Simon) who died under tragic circumstances. Oliver’s never fully recovered from that incident, and sees some of Irena’s strange beliefs in Amy’s imagination. It’s as though he’s haunted by a ghost.
This movie is a sequel to 1942’s Cat People, foisted on producer Val Lewton complete with mandatory title by executives at RKO. He was none too keen on just doing another movie about someone turning into a panther, so this is a completely different story that happens to have several characters returning from the first one.
Amy has a severe rift with the other children when they aren’t invited to her birthday party (because Amy put the invitations in a magic hollow tree instead of the official post office mailbox) and is very lonely. She wanders by the spooky old Farren house, where a mysterious voice gifts her with a ring, and a severe-looking woman chases her off.
Jamaican manservant Edward (Sir Lancelot) playfully suggests that her new jewel is a wishing ring, and Amy wishes to have a friend. Seemingly, her wish comes true, even if her parents can’t see who she’s playing with in the yard.
Told that she must return the ring, Amy goes back to the Farren house with Edward, and meets Julia Farren (Julia Dean) an elderly actress, and her daughter Barbara (Elizabeth Russell). Mrs. Farren is friendly, but a bit delusional–she thinks that the real Barbara died years ago, and this Barbara is an imposter, which has made Barbara bitter to the point of near-madness.
Amy’s friend turns out to be Irena, who may be a ghost, or imaginary, cobbled together from pictures Amy’s seen and the name her mother mentions. The story never quite specifies. This disturbs Oliver, who reacts badly. On Christmas Night, Amy runs away into a snowstorm, leading to a strange climax.
This movie is certainly not the type of horror story one might expect from the title. There are certainly scary bits, and sad parts, but from Oliver and Alice’s perspective, it’s more about what happens after you’ve survived a horror story. Despite what we saw (or think we saw) in the previous movie, Oliver has convinced himself that Irena never actually transformed into a cat, and it was her irrational belief that she would that led to her death. That’s why he is disturbed by Amy’s bouts of imagination (even when Amy is not in fact imagining things.) He even resorts to saying that she’s deliberately lying in an attempt to scare her out of it.
Friendly teacher Miss Callahan (Eve Marsh) explains that imaginary friends are not harmful, but a normal part of child development, and helps Oliver regain his senses. (This scene is one of the reasons this movie is often screened for child psychology students.)
This film is shot well, with good use of lighting and special effects. Ann Carter is an exceptional child actress, and the supporting cast is also excellent. There is genuine suspense.
Content note: A butterfly is crushed, and Amy hits a boy as a result. Suicide is mentioned. Oliver spanks Amy off-screen, and this is treated as a normal, if last resort, punishment. Julia emotionally abuses Barbara due to her delusions.
Overall, this is actually a heartwarming holiday film for certain kinds of families. If you can’t take another viewing of It’s a Wonderful Life or Miracle on 34th Street, try this one instead.
