The Cat o' Nine Tails
Reviews
John Chard
Sixth Sense and Nine Avenues. Il gatto a nove code (The Cat O’ Nine Tails) is written and directed by Dario Argento. It stars Karl Malden, James Franciscus, Catherine Spaak, Horst Frank, Aldo Reggiani, Carlo Alighiero and Rada Rassimov. Music is by Ennio Morricone and cinematography by Erico Menczer. Blind puzzle solver Franco Arno (Malden) and newspaper man Carlo Giordani (Franciscus) team up to see if they can solve the mystery of the murders that are terrifying the city. With their own lives becoming increasingly in danger, and the lines of investigation splintered all over the place, the men are drawn to the mysterious Terzi Institute where geneticists are tampering with gene patterns… Argento doesn’t like it and the fans are very much divided about the worth of it on the Argento curriculum vitae, yet The Cat O’ Nine Tails is a delightfully entertaining oddity. The plot is labyrinthine with relish on top, spinning the viewers into the same convoluted investigative maze that Messrs Arno and Giordani find themselves in. In fact, it’s near genius that it rarely makes sense under inspection, yet still there’s a fascinating edge to the story, with its characterisations, sexual kinks and cruel murders, there’s a power to the piece that rewards if you can just run with it, buy into Argento’s Giallo singed world. With Malden turning in a great performance and Franciscus performing to a level nobody thought was in him, the lead characters really come to life. Add to that Morricone’s creepy jazzy-garde fuelled score underlining the skew-whiff nature of the beast, and Menczer’s photography tonally muted, tech credits are at one with the themes ticking away in the narrative, a narrative that has observation, ironically, on vision, sight and minds eye. While there’s a couple of rug-pulls jostling for our attention just to keep things twisty. Then there is the director himself. The Cat O’ Nine Tails finds him restrained compared to the excess of style over substance films that would dominate his oeuvre post release of The Cat. That’s not to say there isn’t style here, there’s plenty as Argento dallies in POV, iris vision, and a nifty trick that gives the blind Arno “sight”, further ensuring that the supposed handicapped character is the key player and potential saviour of all. A number of scenes are bursting at the seams with suspense, with a cemetery/mausoleum sequence top draw, for sure Argento is firmly getting in his stride here. It’s not a gore movie, something which I personally think has led to some of Argento’s fans giving the film the cold shoulder, but it’s the tale (or tails of course) and characterisations that hold it up as being under valued. It’s a Giallo whodunit flecked with sexual stings and no little amount style draped all over it. 7/10
JPV852
Okay giallo movie from Dario Argento has its moments and fine performances from James Franciscus and Karl Malden, but the end wasn't exactly satisfying. Still some entertaining scenes here and there. **3.5/5**
Movie Recommendation
The Bird with the Crystal Plumage1970-02-27An American writer living in Rome witnesses an attempted murder that is connected to an ongoing killing spree in the city and conducts his own investigation, despite he and his girlfriend being targeted by the killer.More...
Four Flies on Grey Velvet1971-12-17Roberto, a drummer in a rock band, keeps receiving weird phone calls and being followed by a mysterious man. One night he manages to catch up with his persecutor and tries to get him to talk but in the ensuing struggle he accidentally stabs him. He runs away, but he understands his troubles have just begun when the following day he receives an envelope with photos of him killing the man. Someone is killing all his friends and trying to frame him for the murders.More...
The Witches1966-11-21Following a nervous breakdown, Gwen takes up the job of head teacher in the small village of Haddaby. There she can benefit from the tranquillity and peace, enabling her to recover fully. But under the facade of idyllic country life she slowly unearths the frightening reality of village life in which the inhabitants are followers of a menacing satanic cult with the power to inflict indiscriminate evil and death if crossed.More...
The Ten Lives of Titanic the Cat2007-10-31A young girl finds excitement over the prospect of an ocean cruise, suddenly offset by a series of bizarre visions.More...
How to Survive a Plague2012-09-21A story of two coalitions – ACT UP and TAG (Treatment Action Group) – whose activism and innovation turned AIDS from a death sentence into a manageable condition. Despite having no scientific training, these self-made activists infiltrated the pharmaceutical industry and helped identify promising new drugs, moving them from experimental trials to patients in record time.More...
The Five Days1973-04-24In 1848 Milan, a thief and a baker witness the chaotic final days of the Italian Revolution.More...
Lorna1964-09-11Lorna and Jim have been married for a year but Lorna remains sexually unsatisfied. While he's at work, she is raped by an escaped convict, then becomes lustfully involved with him.More...
Into Great Silence2005-09-04An intimate portrayal of the everyday lives of Carthusian monks of the Grande Chartreuse, high in the French Alps (Chartreuse Mountains). The idea for the film was proposed to the monks in 1984, but the Carthusians said they wanted time to think about it. The Carthusians finally contacted Gröning 16 years later to say they were now willing to permit Gröning to shoot the movie, if he was still interested.More...
Moonshine1983-03-03A friendship between a good man with bowling as his only passion and a queer albino.More...
Hollywood Cavalcade1939-10-13Starting in 1913 movie director Connors discovers singer Molly Adair. As she becomes a star she marries an actor, so Connors fires them. She asks for him as director of her next film. Many silent stars shown making the transition to sound.More...
Private Potter1962-01-01A military mission is interrupted when a British soldier claims that God had appeared to him in a transcendental vision.More...
Flap1970-11-13Comedy based on the plight of modern Native Americans living on reservations.More...
The Prize of Peril1983-01-25In a futuristic society, contestants pit their survival skills against each other in a fight to the death for cash prizes, and the contest is aired live on television.More...
Ghosts of Rome1961-04-01An old prince lives in his ancient palace in Rome together with the ghosts of his ancestors. For years he has proudly rejected huge offers by a real estate group seeking to buy the palace and build a department store in its place, but when he suddenly dies his nephew signs the deal. The palace seems lost, but the ghosts forge a plan to save it from destruction.More...
Short Night of Glass Dolls1971-10-28An American journalist in Prague searches for his girlfriend who has suddenly disappeared.More...
Jonathan Livingston Seagull1973-10-23Jonathan is sick and tired of the boring life in his seagull clan. He rather experiments with new, always more daring flying techniques. Since he doesn't fit in, the elders expel him from the clan. So he sets out to discover the world beyond the horizon in a quest for wisdom.More...
Opera1987-12-19A young opera singer is stalked by a deranged fan bent on killing the people associated with her to claim her for himself.More...
Inferno1980-02-07A young man returns from Rome to his sister's satanic New York apartment house.More...
I Knew Her Well1965-12-01A young woman from the Italian countryside experiences the dark side of the business after she moves to Rome to become a star.More...
The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby: Him2014-10-10Told from the man's perspective, the story of a couple trying to reclaim the life and love they once knew and pick up the pieces of a past that may be too far gone.More...
Similar Movies
Deathline
1996-05-08Conny works at the hospital. But she earns the real money together with her friend Bibi in a telephone sex agency. She has a special relationship with one of her clients who demands more than sex. He exploits her fantasies for his erotic productions. Conny has no idea that this eccentric artist is turning the sex tales into deadly reality. The obsessions increase from call to call. Conny believes he has the client under control. But then two women are found dead...The Big Sleep
1946-08-22Private Investigator Philip Marlowe is hired by wealthy General Sternwood regarding a matter involving his youngest daughter Carmen. Before the complex case is over, Marlowe sees murder, blackmail, deception, and what might be love.Don't Look Now
1973-10-11While grieving a terrible loss, a married couple meet two mysterious sisters, one of whom gives them a message sent from the afterlife.Halloween
1978-10-24Fifteen years after murdering his sister on Halloween Night 1963, Michael Myers escapes from a mental hospital and returns to the small town of Haddonfield, Illinois to kill again.The Maltese Falcon
1941-10-18A private detective takes on a case that involves him with three eccentric criminals, a beautiful liar, and their quest for a priceless statuette.Dirty Harry
1971-12-23When a madman dubbed 'Scorpio' terrorizes San Francisco, hard-nosed cop, Harry Callahan – famous for his take-no-prisoners approach to law enforcement – is tasked with hunting down the psychopath.Blue Velvet
1986-09-19The discovery of a severed human ear found in a field leads a young man on an investigation related to a beautiful, mysterious nightclub singer and a group of psychopathic criminals who have kidnapped her child.Se7en
1995-09-22Two homicide detectives are on a desperate hunt for a serial killer whose crimes are based on the "seven deadly sins" in this dark and haunting film that takes viewers from the tortured remains of one victim to the next. The seasoned Det. Somerset researches each sin in an effort to get inside the killer's mind, while his novice partner, Mills, scoffs at his efforts to unravel the case.Chinatown
1974-06-20Private eye Jake Gittes lives off of the murky moral climate of sunbaked, pre-World War II Southern California. Hired by a beautiful socialite to investigate her husband's extra-marital affair, Gittes is swept into a maelstrom of double dealings and deadly deceits, uncovering a web of personal and political scandals that come crashing together.M
1931-05-11In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert, a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt. Beckert's heinous crimes are so repellant and disruptive to city life that he is even targeted by others in the seedy underworld network. With both cops and criminals in pursuit, the murderer soon realizes that people are on his trail, sending him into a tense, panicked attempt to escape justice.Strangers on a Train
1951-06-27A charming psychopath tries to coerce a tennis star into his theory that two strangers can commit the perfect crime by exchanging murders—each killing the other’s most-hated person.It Happened in Broad ...
1958-06-09The search for a child murderer drags a once-respected detective into an all-consuming obsession.Sliver
1993-05-21A woman moves into a Manhattan apartment, where she learns that the previous tenant's life ended under mysterious circumstances.Founders Day
2024-01-19A small town is shaken by a series of ominous killings in the days leading up to a heated mayoral election.Frankenstein Meets th...
1943-03-12Grave robbers open the grave of the wolf man and awaken him. He doesn't like the idea of being immortal and killing people when the moon is full so tries to find Dr. Frankenstein, in the hopes that the doctor can cure him. Dr. Frankenstein has died; however, his monster is found.Seance on a Wet After...
1964-06-19Working-class British housewife Myra Savage reinvents herself as a medium, holding seances in the sitting room of her home with the hidden assistance of her under-employed, asthmatic husband, Billy. In an attempt to enhance her credibility as a psychic, Myra hatches an elaborate, ill-conceived plot to kidnap a wealthy couple's young daughter so that she can then help the police "find" the missing girl.Frankenstein: The Tru...
1974-09-19Victor Frankenstein witnesses his creation turn uncontrollable after he's duped by his associate, Dr. Polidori.The Night of the Hunt...
1955-07-26In Depression-era West Virginia, a serial-killing preacher hunts two young children who know the whereabouts of a stash of money.Lady Frankenstein
1971-10-22When Dr. Frankenstein is killed by a monster he created, his daughter and his lab assistant continue his experiments.The Evil of Frankenst...
1964-05-08Once hounded from his castle by outraged villagers for creating a monstrous living being, Baron Frankenstein returns to Karlstaad. High in the mountains they stumble on the body of the creature, perfectly preserved in the ice. He is brought back to life with the help of the hypnotist Zoltan who now controls the creature. Can Frankenstein break Zoltan's hypnotic spell that incites the monster to commit these horrific murders or will Zoltan induce the creature to destroy its creator?