Il gatto a nove code (1971)

Director:

Dario Argento

Writers:

Dario Argento (screenplay)
Dario Argento (story)
(more)

Release Date:

21 May 1971 (USA)

Genre:

Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Tagline:

It's nine times more suspenseful!

Plot:

A newspaper reporter and a retired, blind journalist try to solve a series of killings connected to a pharmaceutical company's experimental, top-secret research projects and in so doing, both become targets of the killer.

Plot Keywords:

Night | Car | Picture | Street | Niece

Cast

James Franciscus	...	Carlo Giordani
Karl Malden	...	Franco Arno
Catherine Spaak	...	Anna Terzi
Pier Paolo Capponi	...	Police Supt. Spini
Horst Frank	...	Dr. Braun
Rada Rassimov	...	Bianca Merusi
Aldo Reggiani	...	Dr. Casoni
Carlo Alighiero	...	Dr. Calabresi
Vittorio Congia	...	Righetto (cameraman)
Ugo Fangareggi	...	Gigi the Loser
Tom Felleghy	...	Dr. Esson
Emilio Marchesini	...	Dr. Mombelli
Fulvio Mingozzi	...	Spimi's man
Corrado Olmi	...	Morsella
Pino Patti	...	Barber
Umberto Raho	...	Manuel's ex-lover
Jacques Stany	...	Prof. Manera
Stefano Oppedisano	...	Taxi driver
Ada Pometti	...	Telephone operator
Walter Pinelli
Sascha Helwin		(as Sacha Helwin)
Marie Louise Sinclair	...	Film starlet (as Marie Luise Zetha)
Martial Boschero
Cinzia De Carolis	...	Lori
Werner Pochath	...	Manuel
Tino Carraro	...	Prof. Fulvio Terzi
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Aristide Caporale	...	Smoker in the billiard hall (uncredited)
Giovanni Di Benedetto	...	Chief of Police Salmi (uncredited)
Margherita Horowitz	...	Lori's babysitter (uncredited)
Giuseppe Marrocco	...	Man at table in the Saint Peter's Club (uncredited)
Gennarino Pappagalli	...	Man in the Terzi's institute (uncredited)
Aldo Parenti	...	(uncredited)
Franco Ukmar	...	Policeman - speaks with Morsella about food (uncredited)

Directed by
Dario Argento

Writing credits (in alphabetical order)
Dario Argento		screenplay
Dario Argento		story
Luigi Collo		story
Dardano Sacchetti		story
Bryan Edgar Wallace		uncredited

Produced by
Salvatore Argento	....	producer

Original Music by
Ennio Morricone

Cinematography by
Erico Menczer

Film Editing by
Franco Fraticelli

Production Design by
Carlo Leva

Costume Design by
Carlo Leva
Luca Sabatelli

Makeup Department
Giuseppe Ferranti	....	makeup artist
Vincenzo Marchetti	....	assistant makeup artist
Piero Mecacci	....	makeup artist
Maura Turchi	....	hair stylist

Production Management
Angelo Iacono	....	production manager
Giuseppe Mangogna	....	production manager

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Roberto Pariante	....	assistant director

Art Department
Romeo Costantini	....	assistant set decorator
Franco Pedacchia	....	assistant production designer
Lamberto Verdenelli	....	property master

Sound Department
Luciano Anzellotti	....	sound effects
Eugenio Fiori	....	boom operator
Romano Pampaloni	....	sound recordist
Mario Ronchetti	....	sound

Visual Effects by
Luciano Vittori	....	titles & optical effects

Camera and Electrical Department
Roberto Bertozzi	....	electrician
Roberto Brega	....	camera operator
Arturo de Castelterlango	....	first assistant camera
Rodolfo Flibotti	....	gaffer
Giuseppe Gabrielli	....	grip
Maurizio La Monica	....	second assistant camera
Alberico Loreti	....	best boy electric
Renato Mascagno	....	first assistant camera
Ettore Migalizzi	....	grip
Giovanni Migalizzi	....	grip
Maurizio Migalizzi	....	key grip
Firmino Palmieri	....	still photographer
Franco Rachini	....	electrician
Carlo Vinciguerra	....	electrician

Editorial Department
Cesarina Casini	....	first assistant editor
Sergio Fraticelli	....	second assistant editor

Music Department
Bruno Nicolai	....	conductor

Other crew
Carlo Du Bois	....	administrator
Roberta Leoni	....	production secretary
Bruno Ukmar	....	gunsmith
Luciano Vittori	....	title designer

Production Companies

• Labrador Films
• Seda Spettacoli
• Terra-Filmkunst
• Transconta SA

Distributors

• Mondial Films (1971) (France) (theatrical)
• National General Pictures (1971) (USA) (theatrical) (English-track)
• Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS) (1977) (USA) (TV) (broadcast premiere)
• Constantin Film (1971) (West Germany) (theatrical)
• Constantin Film (1971) (West Germany) (theatrical) (dubbed)
• Valio-Filmi (1972) (Finland) (theatrical)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (2007) (USA) (DVD) (widescreen)
• Anchor Bay Entertainment (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Astro Distribution (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Bingo Video Inc. (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Cinefear (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Control Productions (????) (Australia) (DVD)
• DMEG (2004) (Sweden) (VHS)
• Diamond Entertainment Group (DEG) (2003) (USA) (DVD)
• Dutch FilmWorks (DFW) (????) (Netherlands) (DVD)
• Echo Bridge Home Entertainment (2002) (USA) (DVD)
• Emerald (2008) (Argentina) (DVD)
• Future Film (2005) (Finland) (DVD)
• K & C Video (????) (Australia) (VHS)
• Krause & Schneider Multimedia (KSM) (2005) (Germany) (DVD)
• Miracle Pictures (2004) (UK) (DVD)
• Reel Media International (2005) (USA) (VHS)
• Reel Media International (2007) (USA) (all media)
• Simitar Video (????) (USA) (VHS)
• Summit Video (????) (Australia) (VHS)
• UFA Video (????) (West Germany) (VHS)
• XT Video Entertainment (2005) (Austria) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Cat o' Nine Tails (USA) (dubbed version)
Die neunschwänzige Katze (West Germany)
Le chat à neuf queues (France)
The Cat o' Nine Tails (USA) (DVD title)

Runtime:

Spain:110 min | USA:112 min | Argentina:115 min | USA:90 min (cut version) | West Germany:32 min (Super 8-version in 2 parts) | Austria:114 min (Limited Uncut Integral-Version)

Country:

Italy | France | West Germany

Language:

Italian

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Netherlands:16 | Finland:K-15 (2005) (uncut) | Finland:K-16 (1972) (cut) | Norway:16 (1972) | West Germany:18 (nf) | Germany:16 (re-rating) (2006) | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Argentina:16 | Australia:M | Italy:VM14 | Spain:18 | Sweden:15 | UK:15 (video re-rating) (2005) | UK:18 (video rating) (1987) | UK:AA (original rating) | USA:GP (original rating) | USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Cinecittà Studios, Cinecittà, Rome, Lazio, Italy

Company:

Labrador Films

Trivia:

On one gravestone at the cemetery is written "Di Dario" = "From Dario".

Goofs:

Continuity: Early in the graveyard scene, as they are walking, the position of the actors changes between shots. In the side angle Malden has his left arm raised with his hand on Franciscus' right shoulder, in the angle showing them from the front, Malden has his arm down and Franciscus is gripping his shoulder.

Quotes:

Carlo Giordani: Do you know how many people are together right now making love this very second?
Anna Terzi: No.
Carlo Giordani: 780 on the average. Really.
[pause]
Carlo Giordani: I don't know if you're aware of it or not, but that was an invitation.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Death Proof (2007)

Good but not excellent

The second Dario Argento movie is one of his classics, although not as excellent as "L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo". Also here there's everything you expect from an Argento picture -an extremely well directed thriller, exciting shots and a very good editing.

The story is original, but at the end everything seems a little... thrown away, it seems that Dario was in a hurry to finish and the terrible truth at the end has something wasted. A journalist and a blind man investigate about a series of murders -as it happens in many Argento films. Their research focuses on a medical institute, which is developing a medicine for curing criminal instincts.

James Franciscus, the leading man, is too American and too handsome for being a credible Italian journalist. And the scene in the crypt is highly improbable -Franciscus penetrates a crypt in order to look for a necklace...

Good points are the shots -subjective shots-, in which the spectator can follow the action with the assassin eyes. Good cinematography, exciting soundtrack of Ennio Morricone and excellent presence of Karl Malden -he acts very well the role of the blind man.

If "L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo" deserves 9 out of 10, "Il gatto a nove code" deserves "only" 7 out of 10.