Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site utcsri.UUCP Path: utzoo!utcsri!hofbauer From: hofbauer@utcsri.UUCP (John Hofbauer) Newsgroups: net.movies Subject: Re: Scariest Movies Message-ID: <1573@utcsri.UUCP> Date: Wed, 30-Oct-85 19:52:16 EST Article-I.D.: utcsri.1573 Posted: Wed Oct 30 19:52:16 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 30-Oct-85 20:30:24 EST References: <625@h-sc1.UUCP> <102800014@uiucuxc> Organization: CSRI, University of Toronto Lines: 20 > One, though, deserves mention - CAT PEOPLE (starring Nastassia > Kinski). There is little actual "gore," but the *tension* in This is a remake (more or less) of a 1942 RKO film of the same name. It was the first of a series of minor classics produced by Val Lewton. Lewton, a highly cultured Russian emigre, was saddled by the studio with a miniscule budget, even for those days, and a set of impossible titles such as CAT PEOPLE, CURSE OF THE CAT PEOPLE, I WALKED WITH A ZOMBIE, etc. Rather than make the expected type of third rate horror movie with people wearing moth-eaten cat costumes, he decided to suggest the transformations and let the audience's imagination fill in the details. The result was a series of highly entertaining and intelligent thrillers. Incidently Lewton gave Robert Wise and Mark Robson their first opportunity to direct with films in this series. The Kirk Douglas character in THE BAD AND THE BEAUTIFUL (1952) is modelled, in part, on Lewton. In one scene he is faced with producing a B picture with moth-eaten costumes. This clearly offends his sense of taste and so he decides to merely suggest the creatures, a la CAT PEOPLE. John Houseman who produced this film was a friend of Lewton's.