Runtime: A lean mean 69 minutes
Directed by: Jacques Tournier
Starring: James Ellison, Frances Dee, Tom Conway, Edith Barrett,
From: RKO
Thank heavens this lived up to the hype I heard about beforehand. Read some details below:
Last night this played on Turner Classic Movies. Last month I saw the original Cat People; I mentioned it on a messageboard and it was recommended to me that I see this one. Of course I was familiar with the film but this was my first viewing.
This movie isn't a “zombie picture” in a traditional sense; there is plenty of voodoo as a Canadian nurse travels to a fictitious Caribbean island to take care of a young woman who is in a catatonic state. Throughout the short 69 minute runtime, there are plenty of chilling moments, bits that I will never forget. I dare not divulge many of the secrets for those wanting to see this in the future (as there's a lot to unpack), except that there's a bug-eyed man you see a few times, and there's a haunting image I'll never forget; the same goes for how this ends.
This is a low-budget affair but they made the most with the money and it is easy to believe they are actually in the Caribbean. Like in Cat People, light and shadow are used perfectly. The history of the region and how the white European man colonized the area and treated the poor natives is one of the plot points; I mention that as an example of how this isn't just “another low-budget horror flick” from a long time ago, and its highly lofted reputation is deserved.
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