| Jeffrey Combs | ... | Edgar Allan Poe | |
| Elyse Levesque | ... | Virginia Poe | |
| Aron Tager | ... | George Graham | |
| Eric Keenleyside | ... | Sgt. Booker | |
| Patrick Gallagher | ... | Barman | |
| Christopher Heyerdahl | ... | Rufus Griswold | |
| Ken Kramer | ... | Doctor | |
| Ian Alexander Martin | ... | Mr. Fordham | |
| Ryan Crocker | ... | Policeman |
| Episode Crew |
Directed by | |||
| Stuart Gordon | |||
| Stuart Ortiz | (additional material) | ||
Writing credits | ||
| Mick Garris | (creator) | |
| Dennis Paoli | (teleplay) & | |
| Stuart Gordon | (teleplay) | |
| Edgar Allan Poe | (short story "The Black Cat") (as Edgar A. Poe) | |
Produced by | |||
| Keith Addis | .... | executive producer | |
| Morris Berger | .... | executive producer | |
| Steve Best | .... | associate producer | |
| Ben Browning | .... | co-producer | |
| Stephen R. Brown | .... | executive producer (as Steve Brown) | |
| Andrew Deane | .... | executive producer | |
| Mick Garris | .... | executive producer | |
| Adam Goldworm | .... | co-producer | |
| John W. Hyde | .... | executive producer | |
| Lisa Richardson | .... | producer | |
| Tom Rowe | .... | producer | |
| Pascal Verschooris | .... | line producer | |
Original Music by | |||
| Rich Ragsdale | (as Richard Ragsdale) | ||
Cinematography by | |||
| Jon Joffin | (director of photography) | ||
Film Editing by | |||
| Marshall Harvey | |||
Casting by | |||
| Stuart Aikins | |||
| Sean Cossey | |||
| Lindsey Hayes Kroeger | |||
| David Rapaport | (as David H. Rapaport) | ||
Production Design by | |||
| Don Macaulay | |||
Art Direction by | |||
| Margot Ready | |||
Set Decoration by | |||
| Ide Foyle | |||
Costume Design by | |||
| Lyn Kelly | |||
Makeup Department | |||
| Howard Berger | .... | special effects makeup | |
| Lyne Denomme | .... | first assistant makeup | |
| Mike Fields | .... | on-set key makeup artist (as Michael Fields) | |
| Sarah Graham | .... | on-set key makeup artist | |
| Marcy Hodel | .... | first assistant hair stylist | |
| Harrison Lorenzana | .... | on-set key makeup artist | |
| Gregory Nicotero | .... | special effects makeup | |
| Geoff Redknap | .... | on-set key makeup artist (as Jeff Redknap) | |
| Adina Shore | .... | key hair stylist | |
| Margaret Solomon | .... | key makeup | |
| Elisabeth Jolliffe | .... | key makeup artist: second unit (uncredited) | |
Second Unit Director or Assistant Director | |||
| Alexia S. Droz | .... | second assistant director (as Alexia Droz) | |
| David Markowitz | .... | first assistant director | |
| Ania Musiatowicz | .... | third assistant director | |
| Stuart Ortiz | .... | director: additional imaging | |
| Rob Duncan | .... | first assistant director: second unit (uncredited) | |
Art Department | |||
| Andrei Andrianko | .... | assistant art director | |
| Nick Dibley | .... | property master (as Nicholas Dibley) | |
| Jim Geddes | .... | construction coordinator | |
| John McIntosh | .... | greens | |
| Jake Miller | .... | assistant property master | |
| Nathalie Morin | .... | assistant set decorator (as Natalie Morin) | |
| Zbibgniew Scheller | .... | construction foreman (as Zbish Scheller) | |
| John Wilcox | .... | paint coordinator | |
| Rowena O'Connor | .... | assistant on-set props (uncredited) | |
Sound Department | |||
| Anke Bakker | .... | sound supervisor | |
| Brian Campbell | .... | dialogue editor | |
| Jay Cheetham | .... | background sound editor | |
| Kelly Cole | .... | re-recording mixer | |
| Jacqueline Cristianini | .... | dialogue/adr supervisor | |
| Hugo DeLaCerda | .... | re-recording mixer | |
| Kris Fenske | .... | sound designer | |
| Devan Kraushar | .... | sound effects editor | |
| Jason Mauza | .... | foley editor | |
| Laurie Melhus | .... | audio post-production coordinator | |
| Glen Noseworthy | .... | adr mixer | |
| Iain Pattison | .... | re-recording mixer | |
| Sebastian Salm | .... | sound mixer | |
| Shane Shemko | .... | foley artist | |
| Colin Smith | .... | boom operator | |
| Cam Wagner | .... | foley artist | |
| Matthew Wilson | .... | sound effects editor | |
Special Effects by | |||
| Jaremy Aiello | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Randy Ball | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Jack Bricker | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Rob Derry | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Terri Fluker | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Derek Heselton | .... | best boy special effects | |
| Steve Katz | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group (as Steven Katz) | |
| Lynette Roy | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Wayne Szybunka | .... | special effects coordinator | |
| Veronica Torres | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| John Wheaton | .... | effects crew: K.N.B. EFX Group | |
| Mike Hyrman | .... | special effects technician (uncredited) | |
| Lino Stavole | .... | special effects technician: mold department (uncredited) | |
| Chris Sturges | .... | special effects technician (uncredited) | |
| Attila Vaski | .... | lead/fab/asst (uncredited) | |
Visual Effects by | |||
| Christopher Ahrens | .... | cg artist | |
| Matt Belbin | .... | digital effects editor (as Matthew Belbin) | |
| Sébastien Bergeron | .... | digital effects supervisor | |
| Julie Bergman | .... | cg artist | |
| Michael Goddard | .... | cg artist (as Mike Goddard) | |
| Gael Hollard | .... | digital compositor | |
| Annabelle Kent | .... | digital compositor | |
| Adam Marisett | .... | cg artist | |
| Stephen Paschke | .... | cg artist | |
| Lisa K. Sepp | .... | visual effects producer (as Lisa Sepp-Wilson) | |
| Lee Wilson | .... | visual effects supervisor | |
| Jayson Castro | .... | visual effects production assistant (uncredited) | |
Stunts | |||
| Jim Dunn | .... | stunt coordinator | |
| Dan Redford | .... | stunt double (uncredited) | |
Camera and Electrical Department | |||
| Sandy Cooper | .... | first assistant camera | |
| Brian Johnson | .... | camera operator: "b" camera | |
| Mike Kolafa | .... | gaffer (as Michael Kolafa) | |
| Brock Miller | .... | best boy grip | |
| Jos Oman | .... | first assistant camera | |
| David Pelletier | .... | additional director of photography | |
| Steve Sherlock | .... | key grip | |
| Jared Smith | .... | best boy lighting | |
| Peter Wilke | .... | camera operator: "a" camera | |
| Ian Gariepy | .... | dolly grip (uncredited) | |
| Aaron Haesler | .... | second assistant camera (uncredited) | |
| Marc Nolet | .... | grip (uncredited) | |
| Jeremy Spofford | .... | second assistant camera (uncredited) | |
Casting Department | |||
| Sandra-Ken Freeman | .... | extras casting | |
Costume and Wardrobe Department | |||
| Glenna Owen | .... | assistant costume designer | |
| Tyler Tone | .... | set costume supervisor | |
Editorial Department | |||
| Nathan Atkins | .... | assistant editor | |
| Richard Cordes | .... | color timer | |
| Andrea Dixon | .... | color timer | |
| Asim Matin | .... | assistant editor | |
| Troy Sitter | .... | post-production assistant | |
| Matt Venables | .... | post-production coordinator | |
| Mike Williamson | .... | editorial coordinator | |
Music Department | |||
| Mike Beckett | .... | music editor | |
| Sean McMahon | .... | orchestrator | |
| Jennifer Ross | .... | music supervisor | |
| Ed Shearmur | .... | composer: main title music (as Edward Shearmur) | |
| Casey Stone | .... | scoring mixer | |
| Richard Temple | .... | music preparation | |
| Sean McMahon | .... | musician (uncredited) | |
| Mark Robertson | .... | orchestra contractor (uncredited) | |
Transportation Department | |||
| Louie Hausner | .... | transportation captain | |
| John Swetlikoe | .... | transportation coordinator | |
| Duane Shearer | .... | office driver (uncredited) | |
| Jovan Vujatovic | .... | picture car coordinator (uncredited) | |
Other crew | |||
| Christine Barrie | .... | stand-in | |
| Genessa Davis | .... | assistant production coordinator | |
| Jim Desroches | .... | production coordinator (as James Desroches) | |
| Annie Doyon | .... | assistant accountant | |
| Chris Garbasauskas | .... | production assistant | |
| Cameron Grierson | .... | assistant to producer | |
| Cameron Grierson | .... | script coordinator | |
| Richter Hartig | .... | production auditor: Starz Productions (as Richter Q. Hartig) | |
| Dave Harvey | .... | assistant accountant | |
| Tom Hoeverman | .... | assistant location manager | |
| Elissa Howarth | .... | production administration manager: Starz Productions | |
| Alison Hunter | .... | script supervisor | |
| Andrea Kaufman | .... | production coordinator: Starz Productions (as Andrea M. Kaufman) | |
| Katy Lew | .... | executive administrator | |
| Ross Redhead | .... | assistant to producers | |
| Tracey Renyard | .... | location manager | |
| Adrian Salpeter | .... | producers assistant: Lisa Richardson | |
| Stephen Tibbetts | .... | stand-in (as Stephen Tibbets) | |
| Bill Vigars | .... | unit publicist | |
| Beverly Wiens | .... | production accountant | |
| Anthony Bortolussi | .... | production assistant (uncredited) | |
| Stephanie Brown | .... | production assistant (uncredited) | |
| Nancy Heller | .... | office manager: Anthem Visual Effects (uncredited) | |
| Main series | Episode guide | Full cast and crew |
| Company credits | External reviews | IMDb TV section |
| IMDb Horror section | IMDb USA section | Add this title to MyMovies |
I don't know (nor care) how much research went prior to writing the teleplay for "The Black Cat" and neither do I know to what extent the little details about Edgar Allan Poe's private life are truthful. Basically I just assume that it was Start Gordon's intention to illustrate how creative brilliance and mental madness are two inseparable qualities a horror novelist must dispose of. The tormented protagonist in this umpteenth adaptation of E.A. Poe's legendary tale of "The Black Cat" is no other than E.A. Poe himself! "The Black Cat" also marks Stuart Gordon's second attempt at the narration of a Poe tale, after his straight-to-video version of "The Pit and the Pendulum" in the early 90's. As expected, this is one of the better episodes in the Masters of Horror's second season, though slightly more flawed than I initially expected or hoped. Jeffrey Combs' performance is as always mesmerizing, the filming locations and costumes are downright exquisite and perfectly capture the depressingly harsh atmosphere of the 19th Century first half, but the script is slightly lackluster and even a bit tedious at times. Combs stars as (and creepily resembles) Edgar Allan Poe and the story takes place during an incredibly difficult period of his life. Poe is completely out of writing-inspiration, struggles with financial problems as well as alcoholism and his beloved young wife Virginia fell victim to a severe illness. Unable to deal with all of this, he develops a strange paranoid condition where he thinks the black house cat is some kind of immortal demon that gradually destroys his entire existence. Even though the episodes in the Master of Horror series barely last an hour, this almost seems to be long in this case and the lack of relevant subject matter inevitably leads to a couple of redundant padding sequences. The actual share of the titular black cat only begins halfway through the tale, and before that it's primarily Poe's own drinking abuse that dominates. There's only one gory part in "The Black Cat", but I assure it's one that counts! Oh yes, this one-hour film features hands down THE greatest axe murder ever depicted. Combs receives excellent support from Elyse Levesque as Virginia. I never heard of her before, but she's quite talented and extremely good-looking. With a number of episodes still waiting on my personal must-see list, "The Black Cat" ranks as the second best of series two so far, second to Brad Anderson's "Sounds Like".