Cat People

R

Released Apr 2, 1982

1 hr. 58 min.

Horror

List

64%

58 Reviews

Tomatometer

45%

10,000+ Ratings

Audience Score

In this sensual and violent horror tale, Irena Gallier (Nastassia Kinski) has a dark family secret, one that resurfaces dramatically when she reconnects with her estranged brother, Paul (Malcolm McDowell). Living with her sibling in New Orleans, Irena finds herself enamored with zoologist Oliver Yates (John Heard), even as her brother makes his own advances toward her. It's not long before the dark and dangerous curse of the Gallier clan rears its feline head.

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Critics Consensus

Paul Schrader's kinky reimagining of Cat People may prove too grisly and lurid for some audiences, but its provocative style and Natassja Kinski's hypnotic performance should please viewers who like a little gasoline with their fire.

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Alec B

You'll either find it's pseudo art house style and psychosexual thriller plot intriguing or laughable. I fall into the former but wouldn't blame anyone for dismissing it. Ultimately I think Schrader does a good job of expanding on the original's premise and having Kinski didn't hurt.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

01/03/24

Full Review

Steve D

impossible to take seriously.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

08/21/23

Full Review

Ricardo d

Natasha é fabulosa. O filme, tem muitos rodeios e fica cansativo após 1h de tanto suspense. A fotografia é agradável, efeitos especiais bem interessantes. Resta saber, se Oliver transa com uma pantera é zoofilia?

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

04/09/23

Full Review

Daniel C

geweldig net als wolven houw ik ook van die krachtige en machtig dier er zitten goed speciale effecten in maar ja niet iedereen kan deze film waarderen de sex de horror toch twee dingen die in het leven ook voorkomen maar ja. zou wel eens graag de specials van deze film willen zien gelijk was het dier echt of een computer animatie? het is eigenlijk een speciale horror ja thriller horror drama thriller. een jonge vrouw word verliefd op een jonge op zich normaal maar deze vrouw is niet zoals iedereen ze is net als haar broer een panter niets mis maar ze mogen enkel de liefde bedrijven met elkander buiten hen is het taboe. niet enkel de film is goed ook nog een een goede soundtrack Bowie maar ook de rest is goed gewoon geweldig

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

10/19/22

Full Review

matthew d

Sultry and strangely hypnotic with a venomous danger. Director Paul Schrader's erotic horror art film Cat People (1982) is unlike other exploitation horror as his dreamy direction brings an arthouse spin on Jacques Tourneur's horror noir classic. Schrader's directorial style is magnetic and causes you to lull into a state of trance with his colorful tinted shots, slow crawling tracking shots, and haunting atmosphere that implies a sexual danger every night. Schrader melds the hypersexual lust of humans with a primal force. Cat People features bloody dismemberment, transformative body horror, animal magnetism, and female desire. Schrader's openly sexual direction is captivating with a curiosity and playful adoration of the female form. I was taken aback by the sheer volume of nudity in Cat People, but it feels appropriate for this cult classic of erotic horror. I dig how writers Paul Schrader, DeWitt Bodeen, and Alan Ormsby lean into human desire for sex at the catalyst for the cat transformations. The feline imagery and body language is paralleled to female nudity and lust right alongside the male gaze and horny lust. Cat People is certainly erotic and provides some bloody violence that's exciting, but excels most when it's simply allowing Nastassja Kinski to enchant you with her adorable glances and majestic movements that are so intriguing. I found Cat People to hold up because the women ultimately get to choose their partners as the sleazy men are the villains for trying any seedy tactic to seduce the women. I was genuinely shocked by the incest plot point, but it feels like the kind of strange mystical reference that Schrader would love to use to startle and horrify his audiences. German actress Nastassja Kinski is gorgeous, lovable, and seductive as the adorably sweet Irena Gallier. Kinski has to be one of cinema's most mesmerizing actresses as she appears incredibly gentle and concerned, but her playful charm and haunting seductiveness are truly alluring. Nastassja Kinski is amazing in Cat People. I really liked her as an erotic horror heroine. Nastassja Kinski is really brave to have bared it all in a role that is often completely nude. She's shocked, paranoid, terrified, and sympathetic as much as Irena is lustful when she desires her man of choice. Malcolm McDowell is unsettling as the sexual predator priest Paul Gallier. His transformative scenes are grotesque body horror like you'd see in a David Cronenberg feature like Videodrome or The Fly. The practical effects rival John Landis' An American Werewolf in London or John Carpenter's The Thing. John Heard's amiable zoo head Oliver Yates. Heard gets to be the kind and caring boyfriend as well as a sexually domineering man with his complex Oliver. Annette O'Toole is lovely and nice as the jealous zookeeper Alice Perrin. She's more overtly sexual immediately as she clearly loves Heard's Oliver and is obviously jealous of Irena being Oliver's object of desire. I loved her in the 1990 version of IT and was shocked by her topless pool swimming scene here. But Annette O'Toole is really wonderful as a considerate and cautious heroine in her own right in Cat People. Ruby Dee is intriguing as the oddly named Female, who knows more than she lets on at first. Lynn Lowry cameos as the prostitute Ruthie, who is so beautiful and funny. I loved her in Cronenberg's chilling Shivers, so it's neat seeing her in a Paul Schrader picture. Tessa Richarde is stunning as the voluptuous blonde Billie in the graveyard pick-up scene. Editors Jacqueline Cambas, Jere Huggins, and Ned Humphreys cut Cat People to ensure a dreamlike quality. The scenes play out slowly and deliberately for a haunting effect. I never felt bored as they keep Cat People moving along from sexual encounter to encounter. Cinematographer John Bailey shoots sex scenes with a biblical reverence that feels passionate instead of sleazy. I love the red tinted shots of Africa or wherever with the pretty black leopards. All the animal scenes are shot with a cute playfulness that shows off both their cuddly and ferocious natures. I'm seriously impressed with the shadowy noir beauty and tasteful nudity that sometimes hides privates in a creative way. Cat People look gorgeous to this day. Production designer Ferdinando Scarfiotti creates everything from a dreamworld of black leopards to recreating every part of New Orleans' zoo that they actually filmed at for Cat People. His rooms are sparse with seedy hotels and charming country homes. Art direction from Edward Richardson helps the plethora of animal imagery and esoteric arthouse visuals that Schrader loves. Set decorators Jeannine Oppewall, Nancy Patton, Larry Clark Bird, Bruce Weintraub, Lauren Cory, and Erin M. Cummins brings zoos and houses to life with gritty realism to help the grungy aesthetic of the interiors. Composer Giorgio Moroder's iconic 80's synth score for Cat People is lovely and eerie with a haunting romantic feel. Scenes will play out and I'll just be listening to the music create an entirely different vibe because of the pretty melodies and romantic haze of synthesizers. Cat People does not get enough credit for having one of the 1980's best synth scores. Even David Bowie's theme is sexy and enchanting with dreamy synths from Moroder. I simply love composer Giorgio Moroder's eerie electronic synth score for Cat People. Sound designers Richard C. Franklin, Charles L. Campbell, Robert L. Hoyt, Louis L. Edemann, John J. Stephens, Stanley H. Polinsky, and Larry Carow's sound design plays around with silent catlike footsteps and rustling prowling noises throughout Cat People. The echoing leopard roars add a lot of atmosphere. Costume designers Sandy Berke, Jordan Daniel Paredes, Hugo Peña, and Robert Chase create cute and stylish outfits for everyone. Nastassja Kinski gets all of these alluring shirts, shorts, and pants that leave little to the imagination, but work wonders for her character. Make-up artists Leonard Engelman and Thomas R. Burman creates hauntingly beautiful looks for the ladies and disturbing appearances for the disheveled men. Overall, Paul Schrader's Cat People is a brilliant erotic horror film with refined craftsmanship in his auteur filmmaking, abundant nudity, and crazy sex based horror narrative. Nastassja Kinski leads an impressive cast with her enchanting acting.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

This remake version is very erotic horror remake version and really the best David Bowie theme song that later used on Tarantino and other filmmakers on film.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/10/22

Full Review

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Paul Schrader

Director

Nastassja Kinski

Irena Gallier

Malcolm McDowell

Paul Gallier

John Heard

Oliver Yates

Annette O'Toole

Alice Perrin

Ed Begley Jr.

Joe Creigh

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Cat People: Official Clip - Mauled in the Bedroom

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Cat People: Official Clip - Vicious Leopard

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Cat People: Official Clip - The Bloody Blonde

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Cat People: Official Clip - Come Lie Next to Me

3:47

Cat People: Official Clip - Monstrous Transformation

3:12

Cat People: Official Clip - Were-Leopard Attack

1:36

Cat People: Official Clip - The Sacrificial Maiden

3:32

Cat People: Official Clip - Don't Look At Me!

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Cat People: Official Clip - Jaguar Dissection

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Cat People: Official Clip - Vision Quest

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Dwight Brown

Sepia

With a unique blend of mysticism, eroticism and tension, this remake is both engrossing and terrifying in an off-beat way.

Aug 10, 2022

Full Review

Gary Arnold

Washington Post

Schrader takes himself very seriously, but after "Cat People," there's no reason the public should perceive him as anything greater than an exploitation director with delusions of grandeur.

Oct 23, 2018

Full Review

Yardena Arar

Associated Press

Cat People, director Paul Schrader's remake of a 1942 B-movie, combines explicit sex, graphic violence, special effects and the supernatural and somehow falls flat.

Oct 23, 2018

Full Review

Mike Scott

Times-Picayune

Very much a product of its time, it still holds up nicely as a solid horror thriller. Not only does (it) drip with atmosphere -- much of it provided by the spooky, well-shot New Orleans setting -- but it boasts a strong cast.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jul 14, 2023

Full Review

Eddie Harrison

film-authority.com

…the divisions between us run red in Paul Schrader’s dark, almost demented vision of embryonic good and evil…

Rated: 4/5

Feb 27, 2023

Full Review

Kristy Strouse

Wonderfully Weird and Horrifying

Paul Schrader makes this movie his own and I found it to be intoxicating, strange, and at times horrific- a reimagining served with a side of mysticism that is certainly never dull.

Oct 31, 2022

Full Review

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Synopsis

In this sensual and violent horror tale, Irena Gallier (Nastassia Kinski) has a dark family secret, one that resurfaces dramatically when she reconnects with her estranged brother, Paul (Malcolm McDowell). Living with her sibling in New Orleans, Irena finds herself enamored with zoologist Oliver Yates (John Heard), even as her brother makes his own advances toward her. It's not long before the dark and dangerous curse of the Gallier clan rears its feline head.

Director: Paul Schrader
Executive Producer: Jerry Bruckheimer
Screenwriter: DeWitt Bodeen, Alan Ormsby, Paul Schrader
Distributor: MCA/Universal Pictures [us], Image Entertainment Inc.
Production Co: Universal Pictures, RKO Radio Pictures Inc.
Rating: R
Genre: Horror
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 2, 1982, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 11, 2015
Sound Mix: Dolby, Surround

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