Eye of the Cat (1969)** (out of 4)Aunt Danny (Eleanor Parker) is close to dying and at the current time she plans on leaving her money to her cats. Hairdresser Kassia (Gayle Hunnicutt) learns of this and tracks down her nephew Wylie (Michael Sarrazin) so that they can kill her and get her money. The only problem is that Wylie is terrified of cats and the aunt has many of them.EYE OF THE CAT is a film that seems to be a favorite to many people. The film has a small cult following but I must admit that I found the entire film to be rather stupid, laughable and boring. The film clocks in at 101-minutes and that's about thirty-minutes too long because there's really not too much that happens here until the final twenty-minutes of the film. It's a shame that the film didn't turn out better as there are a few interesting ideas but the film is just poorly handles.The biggest problem with the film is the fact that director David Lowell Rich doesn't do much with what he's got. The film is really dragged out and it's rather painfully so because the first hour of the film has pretty much nothing happening. After we learn of the murder plan we get one long dialogue sequence after another and none of them are entertaining. I'd even argue that the characters themselves are all rather bland and everyone is watching to see what happens at the end. Leading up to the ending was just very slow and boring.The final twenty-minutes is when the film finally comes to life and that includes a couple very nice twists at the end. The highlight of the film is a sequence where the aunt, trapped in her wheelchair, finds herself on a hill with the threat of going backwards into the street. This scene makes the movie worth sitting through as it was quite good. The performances for the most part were good enough for this type of film but none of them are what I'd consider excellent.The film's story about Wylie's fear of cats was just a bit too silly in my book and I thought it led to some unintentional laughs. EYE OF THE CAT isn't a horrible movie but there's no question that it's way too bland to be entertaining.

"Eye Of The Cat" is also know as "Wylie". I do not like the name Wylie.I cannot imagine Michale Sarrazin as a man named Wylie.Not in a million years!"Eye Of The Cat" was filmed on location in beautiful San Francisco, and that aspect gives this movie a terrific quality.Universal Pictures made this movie and you can tell.The color and the cinema photography are gorgeous.Universal films especially in the 1950s had gorgeous color.The cast is excellent.You have Gayle Hunicutt who is not that well known, even today.She was a real beauty,sleek and gorgeous like Barbara Parkins.You have the versatile, handsome actor Michael Sarrazin who was under rated as far as I am concerned.My favorite actor in this movie is the drop dead gorgeous Eleanor Parker.I have not seen a movie yet that she did not excel in.Remember Eleanor in some of the earlier Hollywood era movies with leading men like Robert Taylor.This movie has it all.Suspense,lots of scary cats,a nutty older aunt,and lovely to look at San Francisco scenery.I almost forgot, a cat fight between two women!I have this movie.I have the version that has multiple cats chasing Gayle Hunnicutt's character down the stairs.

I just caught a screening of this movie at BAM in Brooklyn last night. I only went because I was given free tickets and dig horror flicks, so with no expectations and my only knowledge being "it has an army of cats," this movie blew me away. I was totally entertained, alternatingly laughing and jumping throughout. The film is shot beautifully, has a great score, the dialogue crackles, and the cast perfectly walks the line between camp and horror. The vaguely incestuous scenes between Wylie and his Aunt Dani are particularly great.Of course, the best part is the cats! I was promised an army of cats, and this movie delivered. They truly make the average housecat look like a fierce creature of the night.A fun horror movie through and through. Please release this on DVD!

I saw this film back in India in the early 70s during its second run. I enjoyed it very much at the time and even now, looking back after over 30 years, I am amazed that this movie gets so little publicity. Other films that are less than half as good have long got a DVD release, but very few people seem to know of this one's existence.All right, it is not a classic but is certainly good for Saturday evening. The plot of a sick, reclusive elderly woman living in a mansion with lots of money is nothing new; nor is the arrival of 'caring' young relatives hoping to find a place in her will. But the presence of some twenty sinister looking CATS seemingly guarding their mistresses' interests certainly adds a diabolical angle. Michael Sarrazin's unnatural phobia of the cats adds to the drama, as does Gayle Hunnicut's murderous nurse. There are some superb scenes like the aforementioned runaway wheelchair and the outstanding Oxygen Tent sequence. I hope someone has the sense to bring this film out on DVD in its original theatrical release format.