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"CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

[ Edited ]

8:00 p.m. Eastern--  "Cat People"  Simone Simon, Kent Smith, Tom Conway, Jane Randolph

 

 

Famously eerie, artful horror classic, for people who don't like horror.  Jacques Tourneur (director) and Val Lewton (producer) combine their odd, subtle sensibilities to produce a landmark in ultimate suspense, one that critics still argue about.  They can spend hours and pages on  "The scene with the bus!",   or even more ambiguous,  "The scene in the deserted indoor swimming pool!"   What does it all mean, etc.

 

All-American yeoman actor Kent Smith is adorable as a New York marine architect who finds love with a mysterious fashion designer (fragile, lovely Simone Simon) from Serbia.  She happens to believe that she and her fellow villagers from a remote region have the ability to turn into wild, panther-like cats on occasion.  This is especially troubling, as her jealousy is aroused against Kent Smith's attractive colleague (Jane Randolph), who happens to be in love with him as well...

 

Tom Conway gives an enjoyably conniving performance as a psychiatrist with questionable ethics.  He's the brother of George Sanders, and it's fun to track the similarity (and differences) in their mannerisms...

 

Trivia--  This is the same magnificent staircase used in Orson Welles' flawed masterpiece, "The Magnificent Ambersons".

 

My favorite scene might be the strange, celebratory restaurant sequence, where we start to get ominous forebodings, partly from this rather feline stranger:

 

 

Fun Saturday night movie, with epic popcorn and full-on house lights turned up!  

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

One of my mother's favorite actresses was Simone Simon.  

 

Simone SImon in Cat People (1942)

[was Homegirl] Love to be home . . . thus the screen name. Joined 2003.
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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

@Oznell 

Thanks for posting. Difficult for me to believe but, I don’t think I have seen it; I think the last time I started to watch it was on very late and I fell asleep. 

 

When I hear or see Kent Smith, I think of Peyton Place and also Nora Prentiss with Ann Sheridan.  I have always liked his voice. 

 

Don’t need to worry about being scared in the dark, it will still be light here!  (5pm). 

And later for film noir the 1951 “M” - sounds like a good evening for a cold supper- perhaps just some bread, Charcuterie and wine. (One of my “lazy girl” specials!)

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

If you like "Cat People" be sure and catch the sequel......

Curse of Cat People.jpg

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

Sounds like a yummy cinematic picnic, @trenet

 

Agreed, @silkyk,  "The Curse...."  has a lingering, very dreamy quality, plus that remarkable little child actress, Ann Carter...

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

I have seen the Cat People several times and always enjoy.  It is something I lean toward in movie watching, eerie story and plots. I am a horror fan, not blood and gore and violence but movies which frighten like The Haunting and Ghost Story, the old Thriller TV series which Boris Karloff narrated and at times starred in , One Step Beyond, the Uninvited with Ray Milland, The Spiral Staircase with Brent and McQuire, so many others.

Suspense, thrills, ghosts, mystery, fright, love these type movies.

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

You have very nuanced and discerning taste in your penchant for thrills and chills, dear @spiderw!

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

@silkyk @Oznell 

I’ll have to look for “The Curse”; I agree Ann Carter is amazing. I enjoyed “Cat People” - I think I had seen parts of it  - probably I had attempted to watch when tired and dozed off! 

 

@spiderw 

“The Uninvited” is one of my favourite movies, wonderful

acting and mood, I never tire of it.

 

(By the way, @Oznell, I decided not to be quite so lazy and added an artichoke & pea pasta salad with a lemon vinaigrette to the charcuterie plate -just mild coppa  and prosciutto.  The Italian Fruliano was great with the prosciutto and some Sicilian almonds) 

 

 

 

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM

Oh, you're torturing me, @trenet, it's close to dinner time and your feast the other day sounds absolutely delizioso!

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Re: "CAT PEOPLE" SIMONE SIMON, KENT SMITH SATURDAY 8:00 P.M. EASTERN TCM


@spiderw wrote:

I have seen the Cat People several times and always enjoy.  It is something I lean toward in movie watching, eerie story and plots. I am a horror fan, not blood and gore and violence but movies which frighten like The Haunting and Ghost Story, the old Thriller TV series which Boris Karloff narrated and at times starred in , One Step Beyond, the Uninvited with Ray Milland, The Spiral Staircase with Brent and McQuire, so many others.

Suspense, thrills, ghosts, mystery, fright, love these type movies.


I think you would really love the video library that the library offers at https://www.kanopy.com/    Free with your library card! I have found some wonderful old movies (we like the same kinda eerie stuff) there. You can only watch 6 a month but there are some wonderful old scary classic there that I have NEVER found anywhere else. Enjoy!