The Cat Blu Ray Review (88 Films)

The Cat (aKa Lo Mau The 1000 Years Cat, Karate Cat, Nine Lives, Wisely’s Cat, and 衛斯理之老貓) is a 1991 science fiction horror film directed by Ngai Choi Lam (Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky, Erotic Ghost Story, Saga of the Phoenix, Her Vengeance, The Ghost Snatchers, and The Seventh Curse). It was written by Gordon Chan (Hard Boiled, Dragons Forever, The Big Heat, Fist of Legend, The Four franchise, and The Medallion) and Hing-Ka Chan (Jiang Hu: The Triad Zone, A Better Tomorrow franchise, Beast Cops, 1941 Hong Kong on Fire, and Thunderbolt). It’s based on “The Old Cat” from author Kuang Ni (as Wisely). Li Tung (played by: Lawrence Lau from Bullet in the Head, My Date with a Vampire, Doctor Vampire, and Haunted Jail House) is unable to sleep due to his noisy upstairs neighbors. When he goes to confront them, he encounters an old man Errol (played by: Siu-ming Lau from A Better Tomorrow II, The Medallion, A Chinese Ghost Story, Police Story 2, Drunken Master II, Project A 2, and Dr. Lamb) and a young woman Princess (played by: Gloria Yip from Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky, The Blue Jean Monster, Pink Bomb, and Saga of the Phoenix) with a mysterious black cat. The next morning, the trio all vanish. They leave behind a startling surprise in a pile of newspapers for Tung to uncover. As the police investigates this bizarre mystery, Inspector Wang Chieh-Mei (played by: Philip Kwok from Master of the Flying Guillotine, Hard Boiled, Tomorrow Never Dies, Brotherhood of the Wolf, The Eye 2, and Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky) invites Tung to dinner at the home of bestselling novelist Wisely (played by: Waise Lee from A Better Tomorrow, Bullet in the Head, The Big Heat, A Chinese Ghost Story franchise, Pink Bomb, and Infernal Affairs III) and his companion Pai So (played by: Christine Ng from Police Story II, Rush Hour, Crime Story, Troublesome Night franchise, and Breakout Brothers franchise). They find out the loud family isn’t the problem, it’s killer aliens disguised as humans that are the real threats. They must fight together to stop them from pure destruction!!!! 1991’s The Cat is such a bizarre hybrid for science fiction, horror, and action. It manages to blend them all together and it really elevates this wild production. Several films were made based on the Wisely stories including The Seventh Curse, The Legend of Wisely, Bury Me High, and The Wesley’s Mysterious File. This might be the most ambitious adaptation from the author but it’s also the most entertaining effort out of them all. Director Ngai Choi Lam is no stranger to making over the top gory films, it’s the same demented mind that brought the world Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky. The Cat was written by two of the most talented writers when it comes to Asian cinema. The Cats deals with a mysterious odd family that leaves their home without much notice after being confronted by their neighbor. The police look into it and it leads to various strange events soon after. The Cat is packed with so many familiar faces from bigger Asian productions. Most of them will be recognized right away. This had so many major roles so it didn’t really have a normal lead in this. I would say that Siu-ming Lau, Gloria Yip, Philip Kwok, Waise Lee, and Christine Ng stood out the most in this. The acting is all over the place here, everything from great to some live action cartoon stuff. The rest of the supporting cast includes Lawrence Lau, Yee Cheng (Bullet in the Head), Yuk-San Cheung (Double Impact), Liang Chiang (Seeding of a Ghost), Lam Chua (A Roof with a View), Chien-Hua Hsu (Bloody Parrot), Long Kong (Kickboxer), Peter Kwok (Rage of Ninja), and Hsiang Lin Yin (Hard Boiled). The Cat has one of the most hilarious unintentional comedy scenes in the history of cinema. The General (The Cat) has a epic fight with giant dog Lao Pu, it has to be seen to be believed. It has a few additional moments that don’t fit but it adds to it’s wacky vibe. It goes from a silly mystery to something much darker. The Star Killer is a fascinating villain. It’s kinda The Hidden, this evil alien can change it’s appearance to anyone. One of my personal favorite aspects of The Cat is it’s gruesome slimy, morbidly oozing, and straight up ridiculous special fx. It definitely represents the 80’s to the fullest when it comes to that department and that’s great. It reminded of similar stuff from The Blob and The Thing. The Cat gets away from it’s main story and concept towards the end. It goes for all out entertainment and it keeps trying to top itself for it’s finale. The Cat is influenced by some classics but it’s truly one of a kind after being experienced. It’s original, risky, and it’s a very brave production with no regrets. STRONGLY RECOMMENDED!!!! Let’s discuss this high definition presentation and special features from 88 Films! This 1080p (1.85:1) uncut transfer is from a brand new 2K restoration from the original camera negative. This looks awesome for being a no budget weird 90’s science fiction horror action hybrid. They used a good amount of their money on special fx because there’s some insane visuals when it comes to The Cat. It has an Cantonese: LPCM 2.0 Mono track on the disc. The audio is great here, it’s loaded with plenty of action, fights, and chaotic scenarios. All of the dialogue is crystal clear, the insanity is elevated, and the music has a huge boost to it. It has English SDH subtitles. The best extra from this home video is the 97 minute “Japanese Cut” in standard definition with English subtitles. It has an “Audio Commentary” with expert Frank Djeng. He mentions some of the stuff that he’s done over the years. He talks about it being adapted from “The Old Cat”. It had several different names in other countries. It was one of the last films directed from Ngai Choi Lam. Frank drops all kinds of knowledge including the uncredited writers from it. He points out some of the Wisley easter eggs from The Cat. Lots of background info for the cast and crew. He breaks down some of the changes when it comes to this version and the Japanese Cut. It’s packed with so much interesting information and stories from the 80’s sci-fi horror action hybrid. It has the almost 22 minute “Writing the Cat”. It’s an interview with writer Gordon Chan. He chats about how he got involved with The Cat and some of the original people that were working on it when it was first pitched. His mentor convinced him to do it and Golden Harvest was going to produce it. He talks about the difficulty of adapting a novel. So many changes left all of the writers frustrated putting this together. He regrets not developing the characters more in the script. He says the author was fine with this movie adaptation of his work. He goes the collaboration process with the other screenwriters for this. He gets detailed about all kinds of different subjects related to The Cat. It has an almost 2 minute “Stills Gallery”. It has a “Trailer” for The Cat. It has reversible artwork. It’s available everywhere right now, CHECK IT OUT!!!!