Watch The Cat o' Nine Tails For Free

the audience applauded

Good concept, poorly executed.

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

I'm new to the works of Dario Argento, and as a horror fan this may sound like a crazy notion, however something I have been looking to do in this new year of 2018 is widen my horizons abit with some more old school horror titles from yesteryear. The first film to cross my reviewer table actually couldn't have come at a better time as this is being released later this January and is the second film from this legendary Director.The Cat O'Nine Tails is more of a thriller than a horror that focuses on a blind retired journalist Franco Arno (Karl Malden - A Street Car Named Desire) and Journalist Carlo Giordani ( James Franciscus - Beneath The Planet Of The Apes) who are trying to solve a series of murders connected to a pharmaceutical company's experimental, top-secret drug which finds them both becoming targets of the killer.Cat O'Nine Tails is a perfect starter for anyone looking to get into Italian cinema from the 70's. Masterfully shot in a style we have seen in many slasher horror films which proceeded it, I loved the use of the close up shot of the killer's eye as he is about to strike, The killer in first person view is something that reminded me so much of the first Friday the 13th film (but I am sure has been used in many other films around that time). While it may be slow going at times, The Cat O'Nine Tails does hold the attention for the crime drama fan in me. I couldn't guess who the killer may be, the plot had me intrigued, and for the time the murder scenes quenched my Gore thirst even if they were a little over the top (The Train death anyone?). The dubbing was well put together, however I did struggle with a few of of the scenes that focus more on reading i.e newspaper articles and Milk....I didn't know what the bloody hell was in that pyramid shaped carton the killer tries to murder Giordani with. While the acting, at times, is a little dated overall the film holds up well still today. Franciscus and Malden are the stand out performers throughout and the mystery held me till the end. This is an interesting little film, and I personally would love to try more of Argento's work.

RELEASE DETAILS: Copyright 1971 by Seda Spettacoli/Mondial Film (Rome) and Terra Filmkunst (Munich) and Labrador Films (Paris). U.S. and U.K. release by National General Corporation (N.G.C.). New York opening at neighborhood cinemas: 26 May 1971. U.S. release: May 1971. U.K. release: July 1971. 112 minutes (U.S.); 104 minutes (U.K.). Italian release title: Il Gatto a nove code.COMMENT: This Techniscope Dario Argento film suffers from cropping on a TV screen, though it is not one of his class "A" efforts all the same, despite fluid camera-work for the subjective eye of the madman and typical thematic pre-occupations, plus some rather grisly killings. Interest in the actual identity of the murderer is rather perfunctorily worked up, and Karl Malden is almost laughably uncomfortable in the role of a blind ex-newspaperman who loves solving puzzles. James Franciscus is not much more at ease as the newspaperman, but Catherine Spaak makes an agreeable femme fatale.OTHER VIEWS: The above review was based on the cropped TV version. This movie is now available on DVD in its original 'Scope format. Needless to say, it plays far more suspense-fully and really rivets the attention. Even the actors like James Franciscus and Karl Malden come across with far more power and innate charisma.

An early suspense thriller from Dario Argento which lacks some of his later horrific overtones but still benefits from a good helping of style and an involving plot - the story was also written by Argento. Altogether, this is a complex, involving film with plenty of unusual characters with diverse relationships, some good acting, and some moments of extreme violence for which Argento later became known. A big plus in the film's favour is the casting of the charismatic James Franciscus in the lead role as an investigative reporter who's determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. You could be forgiven for thinking that blond American Franciscus falls into the category of his contemporary wooden actors such as William Shatner and Doug McClure, but this is not the case. He lends a sophistication and skill to his character which is rarely seen in these horror films, and Argento gets nicely subtle performance out of him.Franciscus is ably supported by an ageing Karl Malden, cast as a blind man. Malden enjoys himself a lot in a meaty role like this, making his snooping, quick-thinking busybody both comical and humane. The pair are supported by a pushy Catherine Spaak playing a mistress and plenty of other Euro-folk, including Rada Rassimov (Ivan's brother) and Horst Frank, familiar from his earlier role in 1967's potboiler, THE VENGEANCE OF FU MANCHU. A jazzy score from Ennio Morricone never misses a beat, considerably adding to that whole '70s "cool" feel to the film, a make-believe world of exotic locations, wholesome folk and the occasional loose cannon.Argento doesn't fail to add his own trademarks into the brew - including tracking shots (from the killer's point of view, this was before BLACK Christmas too) and some unflinchingly brutal murders. Indeed the giallo form is present and correct here, with a faceless killer (we only ever see their eye in extreme close-up) garrotting a number of unfortunates who were too slow to figure out what was coming. A photographer in the wrong place at the wrong time, an informant and even a couple of scientists fall prone to this powerful murderer, their deaths, while not explicit, still being realistic and hard-hitting. Near the beginning of the film, another man is pushed under the wheels of a train, Argento taking the opportunity to show us his mangled body bouncing and writhing as it is broken under the tons of steel pounding over it.Plenty of action and suspenseful sequences build up the twists and turns in the plot, which lead to a predictable confrontation between Franciscus and the killer. This is a fast-paced, intriguing thriller with plenty going on to fill out the lengthy running time, and a must for fans of both mysteries and Italian crime cinema.

I enjoyed this film however I am bias because I am a big fan of Dario Argento's work.Although some reviews of this film may not put it in the same league as his later works, and despite the fact there is no chance I would state it was anywhere near my favorite work of his, it was still an enjoyable piece of film and a good murder mystery. Sure it does not have the same level of artistic camera work of later works, nor does it have any trademark black gloves or loads of gore, however it still stands up well for a film that is 44 years old.The story is good and revolves around a Medical Research team who's office is broken into and a blind man as well as a reporter who are trying to track down a killer and in the process becoming targets themselves. The characters are good and in the usual fashion of Argento he will keep you guessing right up to the end, and when you think you know who the killer is, you'll be wrong.If you like Argento's work, you should check it out.