The Shadow of the Cat (1961) User Reviews

Another feline up to no good!

[The_Void · 7/10 · 3 January 2007]

Shadow of the Cat is a Poe-esquire horror film that focuses on a sinister animal - the domestic cat. The film begins with a reciting of the Edgar Allen Poe poem 'The Raven', and from there we begin to focus on the title animal. There is nothing about this film that officially suggests it has anything to do with Hammer studios, but the feel of the film is very much like Hammer and the fact that John Gilling - the man behind two of the best Hammer horror films, Plague of the Zombies and The Reptile - is the director means that it has something of an affinity with the studio. The plot focuses on the common Gothic horror theme of a family and an inheritance. The family here is the Venable family, and the story starts properly when a rich old woman is murdered by her relatives because they're after her inheritance. The only witness to the crime was the lady's pet cat, and while normally anyone committing murder in this way would get away with it scot-free, this particular cat takes exception to the murder of its owner and sets about exacting its own revenge.

The plot is, of course, pretty far fetched, but it's handled well and John Gilling never lets it descend into the realms of ridiculousness when it comes to people being murdered by the cat. The cat itself looks sinister enough, and while it doesn't have the same menace as, say, the murderous moggy in Lucio Fulci eighties impression of The Black Cat, the acting from the feline side of the cast is mostly fine. The thick Gothic atmosphere is the film's main asset, and John Gilling achieves this through the black and white cinematography as well as the decor of the central location and many of the events that transpire. The film is very short at around seventy five minutes, but this doesn't matter too much as Gilling makes his point and doesn't let too many sub-plots interfere with that. Of course, this sort of story is rarely going to give way to a truly GREAT film, as there isn't enough of it; but the film moves along nicely for the duration, and the events that build up to the ending ensure that the film does what you would expect of it. Overall, I doubt too many people will be disappointed with this and any fan of British horror will want to check it out.

Well, look what the cat dragged in! Bodies!

[Coventry · 7/10 · 17 December 2017]

"Shadow of the Cat" is a modest and often overlooked Hammer horror production, but simultaneously also an underrated and genuinely creepy gem that is guaranteed to deliver a compelling plot, a moody gothic atmosphere, competent performances from a bunch of Hammer regulars and more than a handful of silly but nevertheless sinister murders committed by (or at least initiated by) a vindictive cat named Tabitha! Moments after her beloved heiress Ella Venable read Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" to her, Tabitha the Cat witnesses how poor Ella gets murdered by her husband Walter and two household staff members. The faithful housecat promptly makes it clear that she will avenge her heiress and terrifies the culprits so badly that they must call in the help of more vicious family members. While six (!) people are desperately trying to annihilate the evasive cat, the good-hearted niece Beth begins to suspect that aunt Ella's disappearance and the sudden fear for the otherwise friendly animal might have something to do with a missing testament. Sure, it requires a large dose of "suspension of disbelief" to accept how unnaturally petrified these people are of a simple cat, but George Baxt's screenplay is clever and John Gilling's direction is professional enough for the film to remain suspenseful. Gilling made some of Britain's best and most nightmarish horror films, by the way, like "Plague of the Zombies" and "The Flesh and the Fiends".

A finely crafted tale of murder, greed and revenge.

[capkronos · 7/10 · 4 May 2008]

On a stormy night, elderly Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) reads aloud a passage from Poe's "The Raven" before a man sneaks up behind her and clubs her over the head. Her body is wrapped up and carried outside as the woman's cat Tabitha, who witnessed the crime, quickly rushes out the door. The victim turns out to be a very wealthy woman who has been trapped in a loveless 30-year marriage to Walter (André Morell), who made no qualms about marrying her for her money. We also learn that her killer, Andrew the butler (Andrew Crawford), as well as the maid, Clara (Freda Jackson) are also in on the murder and have been promised a healthy cut of the inheritance if they play along. Ella's body is buried in a shallow grave somewhere on the property. A few days after the murder, Walter contacts the police to let them know his wife has disappeared. He's also taken provisions to ensure he's left everything in the estate by forging a will. However, the actual will is hidden somewhere in the home and must be found and destroyed before anyone else can get their hands on it. Promptly following Ella's disappearance, several relatives arrive at the home. First up is Ella's beloved niece Elizabeth (Barbara Shelley), who seems to be the only person her dead aunt actually loved. Also coming in for a visit are Walter's brother Edgar (Richard Warner), his sleazy, skirt-chasing son Jacob (William Lucas) and Jacob's smarmy wife Louise (Vanda Godsell). Those three are also in on the murder and, just like the two servants, have been payed off to keep quiet and assist in locating the missing will as well as helping throw off the investigators.

So who's going to teach these greedy, murderous, thieving scumbags a lesson? Why Ella's beloved pet puss Tabitha, of course! She makes life a living hell for each of the conspirators; clawing, hissing and causing a general uneasiness and panic amongst them. They all want her captured and killed, which makes them look all the more suspicious to both Elizabeth and the investigators. Hey, it's just a cat, right? But this cat is no ordinary cat. It ignores plates of poisoned meat left around the house and when it's lured into a trap by the tempting treat of live mice, put in a sack and stands the chance of being dunked in the backyard swamp waters, it manages to escape and knock someone into a quicksand bog in the process. The kitty also finds ways to start killing them off one by one; knocking one down a flight of stairs, giving the weak-hearted one in the group a heart attack by rushing at his head and finding other methods of punishing the guilty. Tabitha has plenty of clever tricks up her, uh, paw.

Naturally, a film portraying a domesticated animal going about getting revenge for its slain owner by committing premeditated murder is going to be called far-fetched by some, but this is a horror film we're talking about. I don't see why such nonexistent creatures as vampires, zombies and unkillable slasher maniacs who get shot hundreds of times but keep on tickin' are tolerated but people have a hard time accepting a vengeance-minded domestic cat doing the same thing. Any film with fantasy content requires the suspension of disbelief, and this is no different. But the movie is very well done for what it is. The cast is excellent, it's well paced, the Gothic mansion setting is perfect for this kind of material, the cat itself is fun to watch and there's an interesting score from Mikis Theodorakis, which alternates between commanding to almost whimsical. There is also some clever distorted camera-work to represent the cat's point of view.

Even though the production company is listed as BHP (who according to IMDb only did two other films), it might as well be considered a Hammer Production. In fact, the director, the writer, the editor, the cinematographer, the production designer, the makeup artist and much of the cast frequently worked for Hammer. It was also filmed at Bray Studios. I don't know if the studio lent its resources out to an independent producer or what, but this definitely has that Hammer feel to it and will probably be appreciated by any fan of their usual films.

Well worth finding/ needs DVD restoration

[HEFILM · 6/10 · 22 October 2005]

This Hammer film has a unique story while boasting the typically good to great Hammer assets of editing (which is especially well done this time) and production and of course acting. The copy I saw was a very poor dub of a dub and a good version would rate higher. I'm not sure if this was a Scope movie or not, though many of Hammer's Black and White films were and the full frame version I saw looked cropped. Originally the cat was supposed to be shown only as a shadow, this might have in the long run been more effective, or at least explained the title, though it's the shadow of guilt it still refers too. I can't think of another Hammer film quite like this as far as plot or structure. It starts with a very good longish pre-credit sequence and has typically effective music throughout. Director John Gilling is under-appreciated and this film is unique in his output.

It is fast paced, stylish and fun, actor Andre Morell does a great freak out job. It can be a problem with films where most of the characters are bad guys to keep interest, but this group sweats in fear and celebrates their own misdeeds in a way that makes them engaging. You want them to die but you also somehow sympathize with the inevitable cruel nature of their fate.

Some nice shots of cat's glowing eyes by the way as well.

Tabitha, you've got Pussynality

[bkoganbing · 6/10 · 7 June 2014]

No supernatural creatures in this Hammer film, but a lot of the human cast in The Shadow Of The Cat thinks Tabitha is the feline from hell. Not that they don't deserve what happens to them.

The film opens with Andre Morrell murdering his wife who controls the family fortune and with the connivance of two servants Andrew Crawford and Freda Jackson. The only witness to the event was Tabitha the cat and the sight of the cat gives them guilty consciences.

Other relatives arrive including Barbara Shelley and her fiancé Conrad Phillips and Shelley is the only one that Tabitha behaves with. The others now influenced by Morrell all hate the cat, ascribing all kinds of supernatural behavior. And attempts to trap and kill it result in a whole lot of the cast being eliminated.

This is a good one from Hammer because it relies on the human failings for these people to fail. Tabitha has no powers, she's just smarter than the rest of the humans in the cast.

Cat's got Pussynality.

Do Not Mess With This Cat!...

[azathothpwiggins · 25 June 2021]

After spending a typical evening reading Edgar Allan Poe's "The Raven" to her cat, poor Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) is brutally murdered. With the cat as the only witness to the deed, the three miscreants responsible believe they've committed the perrrfect crime.

Not so fast!

It seems that kitty has a few tricks up her fuzzy sleeves, resulting in mayhem for the three cantankerous coconspirators.

Enter Ella's niece, Elizabeth (Barbara Shelley), who is so nice that she makes Pollyanna look like Mrs. Blaylock from THE OMEN! Also, a copper is under foot, snooping for clues.

As more relatives of the odious variety arrive, it's not certain just who will survive Ella's furtive feline!

THE SHADOW OF THE CAT is a highly entertaining ball of yarn. It's ghastly fun to watch the criminals reduced to jelly at the paws of the titular tabby! The POV, kitty-vision shots are particularly cool.

Andre Morell, Freda Jackson, and Andrew Crawford are all wonderfully wicked in their roles. Highly recommended for lovers of horror with a sense of fun...

Entertaining

[ebeckstr-1 · 6/10 · 27 December 2019]

While working from a script requiring more suspension of disbelief than the plot can easily sustain, and wrought with some leaps of logic, an entertaining movie nonetheless. This UK Gothic thriller takes place around 1900. Its greatest strengths are sincere, solid acting on the part of everyone, a brisk pace, and comfortable reliance on effective, familiar genre conventions. A fun viewing for fans of UK thrillers and horror flicks (although definitely of the former genre, not the latter), or of Barbara Shelley or Andre Morrell.

Kill the cat before the cat kills you!

[mark.waltz · 7/10 · 16 March 2020]

This slow moving but suspenseful Gothic thriller is not your every day old dark house movie, but one where you know who the villains are, await with glee their ultimate demise, and laugh with glee at much of the irony of the story line. It is obvious that the family who kills their aging matriarch hates the very protective cat who witnesses the murder and seeks revenge. Attempts to get rid of the furious feline prove impossible as the cat escapes every time, only turning up to dispatch cleverly those she witnessed being responsible for her beloved mistresses death. When other family members show up, suspicions of foul play become evident as the deaths which occur suddenly do not seem under any manner to be caused by anything other than natural causes or possibly human foul play. Each of the bad guys reacts in complete fear from the approaching cat as if realizing that "This is it. I'm going to be dead in a minute or so.".

Seemingly fragile, André Morell, as the widower of the wealthy murdered woman (Catherine Lacey), is very Boris Karloff like in nature, and he gives a riveting performance which shows a lack of any guilt over having his wife killed yet complete fear when he thinks about what the kitty knows. Freda Jackson is very Mrs. Danvers like as the ruthless housekeeper, and Andrew Crawford demonic as the butler who actually did the dirty deed in the first scene. Then there's the varying relatives, lead by Barbara Shelley as Lacey's favorite niece who appears to be the heir to her estate which had been the motive to the initial murder in the first place.Vanda Godsell is good as a rather suspiciously motivated female staff member. The dark, eerie photography and a chilling musical score are other plusses of this chiller which starts off with Lacey reciting Edgar Allan Poe and ends up with some plot twists that Mr. Poe himself would have been happy with.

Here kitty, kitty...

[ADAM-53 · 8/10 · 30 September 2000]

Although supposedly made under the name of BHP Productions for contractual reasons, there is no doubt that what you are watching is a Hammer film. Everything about it reflects the Hammer trademarks of the era. The lighting, the music, the photography, the use of the exteriors at Bray (Hammer's first and most fruitful home) and the ever-present Black Park (a green lung in urban Slough that Hammer turned into everything from a Swiss mountain stream to a tropical river filled with piranha fish) - nothing is out of place. The plot is typical Grand Guignol - a rich elderly woman is murdered by her relatives for her money. They might get away with it too, except her pet cat takes exception to the plot and decides to exact revenge. While not thought-provoking by any means, the film moves confidently and swiftly along. Director John (Plague of Zombies, The Reptile) Gilling papers enough shocks over the holes in the plot to keep it interesting and the cast (led by Barbara (The Gorgon) Shelley and Andre Morell) do their jobs efficiently and entertainingly. The movie, though, belongs to Tabitha... Oh, and do you get the significance of the widow's reading of Poe's "The Raven" at the start of the film? Creepy stuff!

The Cat's Paw Of Justice

[AaronCapenBanner · 7/10 · 30 August 2020]

A Tabby cat named Tabitha witnesses the murder of its elderly guardian(played by Catherine Lacey) who was the victim of a plot by her four greedy relatives and two servants in order to inherit her valuable estate, but complications ensue when multiple wills must be found, and more urgently the unexpected danger of Tabitha, who enacts a systematic campaign of vengeance against them all, with the exception of one friendly relative(played by Barbara Shelley).

Cat lovers like myself will enjoy this tale, which works better as a droll comedy rather than a scary thriller. To see the relatives over-reaction to the feline(rampant felinaphobia I suspect!) is most amusing, as are their deaths, though this does run the risk of possible melodramatic absurdity, director John Gilling keeps things well balanced, with a fine cast as well making a difference, leading to a satisfying end.

Long unavailable Hammer Studios film can now be finally seen on Blu-ray.

Once upon a midnight dreary...

[gustave_weil · 5/10 · 20 June 2012]

Ah, how the internet 'creates' new mythology. 'Shadow of the Cat' prophetically opens with a quote from Poe's The Raven, and for most of its running time trots out a parade of mystery movie clichés with wildly uneven results. The anvil of foreshadowing plunges oft, and heavily, and the exposition fairy sure does sprinkle her dust over all the cobweb festooned proceedings. My memories (from 70's television) of this film were actually quite fond, but alas time has not been so kind to 'Shadow of the Cat' upon recent review. As for its legendary 'Hammer' status, I proffer the opinion that upon not-so-close scrutiny the script in NO way follows the Hammer formula, and that just because John Gilling, Barbara Shelley, Bray Studios and some production staff were involved- does not this a Hammer film make. This myth needs clearing up, and I quote a treasured volume (purchased in 1973 when I was 13) "The House of Horror The Story of Hammer Films", Ed. Allen Eyles, Robert Adkinson and Nicolas Fry, Lorrimer Publishing, London UK, p. 110- '...it might be noted that 'Shaow of the Cat' and 'Light Up the Sky', two films that have been characterized as Hammer pictures, are in fact not productions of the company'. Until these editors can be positively proved ill informed (from where did they draw their information?) the case seems obvious. '90's reprint editions of this book completely omit page 110 and the gallery 'Brides of Dracula and others' and ignorantly include 'Shadow of the Cat' in the filmography. One might as well include films like 'The Flesh and the Fiends' (another Gilling Gothic from the period) etc as Hammer films simply because they resemble the company's output. Indeed the internet has made unjustifiable legends out of much (the incredibly over-rated, 'Twins of Evil' springs immediately to mind), and while I still enjoy these films they belong in their pop culture place, not elevated to some ridiculous fantasy standard that they most definitely do not attain. That said, 'Shadow of the Cat' was obviously influenced by Hammer, but script wise and structurally it is ostensibly not.

Shadow of the Cat - Is it the Eyes or the Shadow...?

[krocheav · 8/10 · 9 February 2015]

This is such a curious work. Its producer Jon Pennington seemed to be attracted to unusual themes, the year before he made "Faces in the Dark" another story with a haunting ironic final outcome. He also seems to have been fond of working with the much exiled political activist and great Greek composer Mikis Theodorakis ~ an unusual choice for both movies. In fact, if you took the exciting Theodorakis score for 'Cat'...with its eerie grinding base and shrill stings (perfectly bringing to mind the quick movements of a panicked cat) this film would lose much of its considerable atmosphere. The pounding (near symphonic) main title, played over the image of an old dark country manor at the turn of the century sounds reminiscent of a ghostly steam locomotive, this makes the setting appear doubly creepy and hammers home the seriousness of the nasty crime that's just been committed.

People rave about the directorial touches but director John Gilling, while he does a most capable job, had such superb assistance from several important professionals...Veteran director of photography: Arthur Grant ('Quartermas and the Pit '67) works wonders with stark, super sharp B/W images in various difficult indoor situations as well as wide open spaces. The remarkable look of the indoor settings were stylishly created by two hard working gents, Art Director: Don Mingaye ('Phantom of the Opera' 61) and Production Designer: Bernard Robinson who, also in '61, is known for the super atmospheric 'Scream of Fear'. The editor: John Pomeroy (who has also been known to direct) cuts tricky scenes together with much flourish. Then there's veteran sound recordist: Ken Cameron capturing all the verbal dramatics and atmos. Writer, American born George Baxt weaves individual nuances into each of his greed-driven characters - that just seem to keep coming out of the rotting woodwork. This is an A1 team at work behind the camera.

In retrospect, it might perhaps be a pity that director Gilling decided to change Baxt's original script, where the cat was intended to be seen only in 'shadow' (a form of psychological metaphor). Then again, others will argue there are some fine shots of this impressive feline used to good advantage, so maybe it's not easy to decide what may have been better (although I like Baxt's thoughts) Some Cat lovers will be delighted, others won't be overly impressed. Some won't buy the idea of a cat causing such panic, but this bunch of characters are murderers under close investigation, living on their guilt ridden nerves in an era where superstition was rife. They are also struggling with a haunted 'collective', bad conscience.

The entire cast are rather amazing at what they have to convey, such a gathering of stalwart British ensemble players. Any lesser performers may not have been convincing within some of the more difficult to grasp situations. It seems this was originally intended as a Hammer studios film but I've found some of the smaller Hammer productions can at times look a little cheap. The quality production values of this film suggest that Independent producer Jon Pennington may have invested his own larger budget for this odd little work. Two years ago my sister purchased a DVD of 'S. O. T. Cat' from a seller in the UK who claimed his was the only DVD available. It had annoying permanently 'burnt into the image' subtitles! At last, we can now get this new Final Cut release DVD, which features one of the best 'Stills Gallery' extras I've ever seen --sections of the full original music score are synchronized to wonderfully edited images from the feature--

Congratulations Final Cut for this rare quality product. Look for it while you can! It may not please everyone but those who view it as a product of its day, and within the limits of its very well used budget, could be pleasantly surprised ... Anyone seen Tabitha? Purrrr.... KenR.

That cat's got to be destroyed!

[kapelusznik18 · 6/10 · 9 June 2014]

***SPOILERS*** The planned murder as well as disappearance of Ella Venable, Catherine Lacey, by her butler and maid Andrew and Clara, Andrew Crawford & Freda Jackson, went off with out a hitch with Andrew bashing the elderly women's brains in and with the help of Clara burying her body in and around the swamps outside the Venable family home. The only problem is that Ella's sweet and cuddly cat Tabitha saw them commit the murder and where they buried Ella's body.

This all was done under the orders and instructions of Ella's husband Walter, Andre Morell, whom Ella was going to cut out of her will and replace with her niece Beth, Barbara Shelly. It's Beth who among everyone in the Venable can was not obsessed with money and showed genuine love and affection for her aunt. It's in fact Tabitha who starts the ball rolling in avenging her mistress Ella's murder. And in the end she not only has everyone involved, both actively and behind the scenes, pay for their crime but also leads the police to where Ella's was buried in order to have her get a proper as well as Christian burial. That's more then could be said for her victims the entire, with the exception of Beth, Venable clan.

Haunted house movie with the one doing the both haunting as well as killing being the family cat Tabitha who looks during the entire movie so cute and harmless that it was hard to believe that she was doing all this carnage. The cat seemed to gather strength as well as invincibility as the movie rolled along making her seem almost ghost-like or supernatural. At first Tabitha seemed a bit confused and in trouble when she was caught in a trap set by Ella's killers that she foolishly got caged in. But it was the bumbling buffoon of a butler Andrew who, by having his head stuck up his behind, let her escape and in trying to recapture her fell into and was swallowed up by the swamp. With Tabitha now free and given a second life, out of the nine that she already has, she went on to the business of finishing the job, of avenging Ella's murder, that she had already started.

I Taw I Taw A Putty Tat

[malcolmgsw · 5/10 · 7 March 2012]

Filmmakers have long faced a dilemma as to how to make benign domestic pets and unferocious animals look malevolent.Short sharp close ups and doom laden music ,mickey mousing are 2 ways of doing it.both are tried by the director,the redoubtable John Gilling.However even he cant make this feline look ferocious.Maybe he should have hired a Twetie Pie double.However this doesn't affect the entertainment to be had as a number of venerable actors make themselves go silly trying to look as if they are truly worried about the pesky canine.It is in fact the sort of film where you scream with laugh rather than fear.It is worth viewing if for no other reason.

Things really come to pass when a cat terrorises a house full of adults.

[jamesraeburn2003 · 19 January 2016]

Wealthy Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) makes a new will leaving everything to her husband Walter (Andre Morell). Ella is clubbed to death by her servant, Andrew (Andrew Crawford), and helped by Walter and the housekeeper, Clara (Freda Jackson), he buries her body in a shallow grave in the woods. The chief witness to all this is Ella's pet cat, Tabatha, which embarks on spying on and terrorising them and they decide to trap and destroy it. After the cat jumps on Walter in the cellar weakening his heart and confining him to bed, Ella's niece, Elizabeth (Barbara Shelley), arrives at the house along with Walter's unscrupulous relatives; his brother Edgar (Richard Warner); his son Jacob (William Lucus) and his wife Louise (Vanda Godsell). Walter instructs Edgar, Jacob and Louise to find another will that exists leaving Ella's entire fortune to Elizabeth - whom they later plan to kill - and to trap and kill the cat. But, Tabatha outwits the plotters every time and one by one the cat exacts vengeance on those that killed its mistress.

A Hammer horror in all but name - the company removed its name from the credits due to legal quota reasons - which supported The Curse Of The Werewolf on the double bill in 1961. It is masterfully directed by John Gilling who succeeds in wringing suspense and tension from a daft plot. There are some neat shocks - the death scenes shot from the cat's point of view using a distorted lens are particularly effective. Arthur Grant's atmospheric black and white camera-work with its use of shadow and Mikos Theodorakis' jumpy score add to the spooky old dark house setting leading up to a shocking climax.

Performances are good all round with Warner, Lucus and Godsell suitably shifty and untrustworthy as the good for nothing, self serving relatives while Conrad Philips (William Tell) is standout as the newspaper man who suspects that the family are up to no good from the word go. Andre Morell is good as the villainous Walter Venable although it is far from his best Hammer performance. I personally prefer him as Dr Watson in The Hound Of The Baskervilles or, better still, Sir James Forbes in The Plague Of The Zombies while Barbara Shelley offers a strong performance as a typical Hammer heroine.

If the film has any flaws it is that the giggles do occasionally set in when the actors go over the top in their hysterical reaction to the cat. The police inspector (Alan Wheatley) rather neatly sums it up: "Things really come to pass when a cat terrorises a house full of adults."

A fair thriller from the fine folks at Hammer.

[Hey_Sweden · 6/10 · 9 October 2022]

A devoted feline is the sole witness to the murder of wealthy, aged eccentric Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey, "The Sorcerers"). Among the guilty who participate in the killing & disposal of the body are Ella's husband Walter (Andre Morell, "Cash on Demand"), and the staff. The cat thereafter seems to make it its mission to drive the evildoers insane with guilt.

And the villains here do practically nothing but act guilty at every turn. Naturally, some people are suspicious of them, including young niece Beth (the lovely Barbara Shelley, "Village of the Damned") and crusading newspaperman Michael Latimer (Conrad Phillips, "Circus of Horrors"). Walter, the butler Andrew (Andrew Crawford, "Bitter Victory") and the maid Clara (Freda Jackson, "Clash of the Titans") spend a lot of their time being terrorized by the cat.

Basically a Hammer film (which had to use an alias due to a legal technicality), this uses a lot of the standard and reliable Hammer pros: production designer Bernard Robinson, art director Don Mingaye, supervising editor James Needs, makeup artist Roy Ashton, etc. Overall, it's watchable, reasonably entertaining stuff, although it ultimately comes off as minor fare, devoted as it is to watching a very fine British cast spend the running time fretting over a cat (to which the guilty parties have assigned demonic qualities). Morell, Shelley, Phillips, et al. All make this a better film than it would have been in lesser hands. (The director, John Gilling, went on to do such other Hammer films as "The Pirates of Blood River", "The Plague of the Zombies", "The Reptile", and "The Mummy's Shroud".). Most amusing of all are the "cat p.o.v. Shots", which are enough of a gimmick to lend this a somewhat fresh perspective.

"The Shadow of the Cat" is not great at all, but it's certainly not bad. It was written by George Baxt, who'd previously concocted a superior British genre movie, "The City of The Dead".

Six out of 10.

Entertaining Poe-like tale

[VADigger · 6/10 · 21 March 2021]

Nifty psychological thriller about a cat that terrorizes the venal family who conspired to kill its mistress for her money. Could easily have come across as silly if not acted with such conviction by its cast of horror flick stalwarts. The pacing could have been a bit tighter, the direction a bit more imaginative, and the music is inappropriate when it isn't annoying. Still, all this is easy to forgive. A fun way to pass your next dark and stormy night.

Tabitha The Cat, Evil Demon!

[hitchcockthelegend · 8/10 · 16 August 2013]

The Shadow of the Cat is directed by John Gilling and written by George Baxt. It stars Conrad Phillips, Barbara Shelley, André Morell, Richard Warner, William Lucas and Andrew Crawford. Music is by Mikis Theodorakis and cinematography by Arthur Grant.

Tabitha the house cat witnesses her mistress being murdered by her scheming family and sets about enacting revenge...

Out of BHP Films, which is basically Hammer Films using an alias due to a technical legality, The Shadow of the Cat is a delightfully eerie entrant in the pantheon of Old Dark House movies.

The picture kicks off with the brutal murder of an old dear, the setting a moody mansion full of shadows, murky rooms, rickety floors, nooks and crannies, and this while Tabitha the cat watches intensely. From here we meet the roll call of family and house servants, the majority of whom are nefarious, and as the paranoia builds amongst the guilty, their reasons for dastardly doings evident, Tabitha goes about her cunning assassinations.

Of for sure it's bonkers in plotting, but Gilling (The Plague of the Zombies/The Reptile) was a very astute director, and he manages to wring much suspense and unease from the story, whilst he's not shy to play up some humour and even adds some decent shocks into the bargain. Cast are on good form, playing it just the way it should be played, and the Bray Studio surrounding areas once again prove to be a useful location for such horror shenanigans.

Aided by Grant's (The Tomb of Ligeia/The Curse of the Werewolf) beautiful black and white photography, Gilling proves masterful at atmosphere. Naturally we have the requisite thunderstorm, but it's the oblique angles and looming shadows that really fill the mood with impending dread. While the use of a stretch screen technique to portray the cat's POV (Catovision?) is a nice trick that works very effectively.

It's a hard film to get hold of, but there are decent sources available to view it (the Onyx Media International double DVD with Cat Girl is a good transfer that does justice to the photography). It's still under seen and little known due to its lack of availability. Which is a shame, because for fans of Old Dark House creepers there's good fun to be had here. 8/10

Far From Purr-fect

[Theo Robertson · 5/10 · 4 July 2013]

This owes a lot to both Edgar Allan Poe and Hammer Studios . A man murders his wife with the help of his two servants to claim the inheritance quickly realising her cat Tabitha has witnessed the murder and is bent on revenge . It sounds slightly bonkers and it is but Poe in his short story The Black Cat brought a credibility to a macabre story of revenge . THE SHADOW OF THE CAT is much more in keeping with the spirit of Poe compared to the 1930s Universal film starring Karloff and Lugosi which took the title of Poe's story but absolutely nothing else .Alas SHADOW OF THE CAT is a rather mundane melodrama . Andre Morrell can do no wrong in my opinion and realises what sort of film he's appearing in and acts accordingly - by hamming things up every chance he gets including a laugh inducing scene where he's stuck in a cellar and shrieks like a banshee as he fights off an attack by Tabitha . As for the rest of the cast they're very mundane who have little impact in a film with a cheap feel with a rather uninteresting screenplay featuring a cat on a revenge mission . Maybe they could have got Charles Bronson to play Tabitha ?

A milestone in the British horror cinema

[searchanddestroy-1 · 8/10 · 21 October 2022]

This horror film from the other side of the channel is for me the best horror film of the sixties, and among the best of all times. The trade mark of John Gilling, the films that comes first in my mind when I think about Gilling, and certainly not his first adventure and crime movies, though excellent. Gilling has never been better than here. This movie inspired an AVENGERS series - 60's - episode: THE HIDDEN TIGER, especially the cat scenes using subective camera, very very impressive, unforgettable. Andre Morell awesome for this little golden gem. In the US, eight years later, you also had a film which the topic and story telling were very close to this one: EYES OF THE CAT.

Shadow of the Cat

[BandSAboutMovies · 4/10 · 2 August 2023]

The butler did do it.

Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) has been murdered by Andrew the butler (Andrew Crawford) and her body buried on her estate, a plot concocted by him, Ella's husband Walter (André Morell) and Clara the maid (Freda Jackson).

They didn't count on Tabitha, Ella's cat.

The only witness to the crime, she instinctively knows that Walter had her master killed. So this gang decides that they have to kill the cat and find the old will, the one that said that her husband would get none of her money.

Even after Tabitha gives Walter a heart attack, he brings in his family to find and kill the cat. Let me tell you, as the owner of a tabby, you have no idea what a cat can do once it sets its mind to doing it.

Directed by John Gilling (The Plague of the Zombies) and written by George Baxt (Burn, Witch, Burn), this is a Hammer movie that doesn't have classic monsters in it. Well, it's credited to BHP Productions, but it's a Hammer, right? Cue people leaving comments telling me how wrong I am. But anyways, Barbara Shelley is quite cute in this and she and the cat are the only good people in a plot full of people willing to kill one another.

Revenge of a tabby cat.

[michaelRokeefe · 8/10 · 8 February 2018]

You can't go wrong with this one. An obvious Hammer Film Productions horror film directed by John Gilling. In the early 1900's, a wealthy, elderly Ella Venable (Catherine Lacey) is murdered in the attic of her manor house. The body is disposed of on the estate grounds. There is a witness to the killing and the burial; that witness is Ella's cat Tabitha.

A police inspector and a newspaper man are summoned to the house to get clues on Ella's reported disappearance. There are some suspicions, since it is well known that Ella's husband Walter (Andre Morell) made her sign a will leaving him her fortune. But suspicion also lies in the maid (Freda Jackson) and the butler, of course, played by Andrew Crawford. Tabitha knows and has full comprehension of the dirty deed and she plans on her own revenge.

The atmosphere, color, pacing...everything creepy is here for you to enjoy.

Rounding out the cast: Barbara Shelley, Conrad Phillips, Richard Warner, William Lucas and Vanda Godsell.

Intriguing if highly flawed effort

[kannibalcorpsegrinder · 5/10 · 7 March 2017]

Following their relatives' murder, a group of relatives gathered together at her house to read her will find their servants and other guests more concerned with killing the pet cat who had witnessed the incident and must try to find a way of stopping them from doing so.

This one was quite a decent and somewhat enjoyable enough effort. One of the more enjoyable elements here is the fact that this one really goes quite nicely with the traditional style of efforts featuring that old-school film style. Playing on the archetype of the old-dark- house mysteries with the idea of relatives gathered together to read the will of a recently-deceased relative only to find themselves involved in a greater horror while staying there, that one gives this a great ploy for having suspenseful moments due to this type of storyline. From the large grand layout and Gothic design of the house, there's plenty to like here while this one plays out the rather fun notion of what's going on as the film's main focus here on taking on measures to find the cat and silence it which plays out throughout the film. These are quite fun from trapping it within cages and trapping it to chasing it around the house and other means of disposing of it which makes for a rather striking and somewhat fun efforts, while there's some rather good stuff to be had here with the later revenge tactics to showcase the cat going around the house with them being paranoid about it to the point of rather comical natures of what's going on here. That in itself is the biggest problem with the film, in that it's central premise is so ludicrous and laughably played-out here that it really strains itself way too often to the point of the cast themselves pointing out how insane the film's plot actually is. That's never a good sign, and it's helped along by the fact that this one really strains the credibility of the action here with the relatives going for the cat in such contrived and increasingly bizarre ways that it feels somewhat silly to have them play out as they do. The last flaw here is the fact that this one really doesn't have all that great of a pace here which really stumbles with all the time spent on doing some rather than dealing with the cat as the family squabbles over the money or the group conniving about finding ways to stop the cat which are so stuffy and bland that it doesn't feature much of any interest during these parts. It's enough to really make it stumble along during the mid-section when it's not involved in anything, and these here do hold it down rather significantly.

Today's Rating/PG: Violence and tense themes of animal abuse.

Unlike Slyvester the cat, Revenge IS sweet

[filmchap · 9/10 · 28 January 2003]

Tweetie Pie was one lucky little yellow canary, if only Slyvester had called Tabitha over for a holiday, Tweety would have stood no chance! Great treasure of a movie this one. Have just watched this film and it ended just minutes ago and I wanted to come on and say what a great atmospheric horror we have here. A true classic. As I and my fellow student mate sat up and watched this we both agreed that it was truely superb. Theres plenty of thrills, chills and fun to be had and I must also just add that as a massive cat lover I especially enjoyed it. A Great British classic to be discovered that I insist you search for.

Enjoy

PS Whats the matter, cat got your tongue!

Justly forgotten

[Leofwine_draca · 4/10 · 21 June 2014]

SHADOW OF THE CAT is well known as being a 'forgotten' Hammer Horror, a movie that was unavailable on home video or DVD for many years until it finally came out last month via a UK DVD release. Having just watched it, I can see why it was 'swept under the carpet' so to speak; it turns out to be one of the company's dullest and silliest affairs.

The basic template of SHADOW OF THE CAT is one of those 'old dark house' thrillers, which invariably involves hidden treasure and a bunch of ne'er-do-wells who find themselves at the mercy of a lurking menace. Except the menace in this case is nothing more than a cute cat whose antics in evading the various villains soon becomes tiresome. Andre Morell and Barbara Shelley are the ones mired in this mess, although neither are at their best.

The film as a whole has a twee and childish feel. The plotting is very slim and even John Gilling's direction can't do much to lift things. Sure, the crisp black and white photography makes the movie look good and the production values are as decent as you'd expect for a Hammer flick, but that doesn't help when the story is so, well, inadequate. I ended up clock watching throughout which is very unusual given that Hammer was and is my favourite film studio of all time and that I typically love the grand Hammer Horrors of old.