(1969)
2
Michael Buening
Somewhere between Freudian psychobabble and Roger Corman freak-outs lies Eye of the Cat, which proves that a producer can hire the screenwriter of Psycho (Joseph Stefano), the animal trainer from The Birds (Ray Berwick), Edith Head, and Lalo Schifrin (channeling Bernard Herrmann), but without a director like Alfred Hitchcock you're still going to fall far short of a memorable horror film. It's still fun, combining '60s exploitation (groovy San Francisco, girl fights, Bond-ready actress Gayle Hunnicutt) with campy delusional Aunt Danny (Eleanor Parker) and the bitter cat-wrangling nephew (Tim Henry) who acts as her caretaker. It's not exactly clear what the cats are capable of; there are hints that they are both malevolent protectors of the aunt and also harmless pets manipulated to scare pretty vacant schemer Wylie (Michael Sarrazin). The sexual relationship between Wylie and his aunt is definitely interesting in a creepy way, but the film is much more successful when pursuing straight thrills (as when Aunt Danny's electric wheelchair short-circuits on a San Francisco street) rather than interfamilial emotional intrigue.
Eye of the Cat on AllMovie
Eye of the Cat (1969)
