The Curse of the Cat People

A seriously oddball sequel, The Curse of the Cat People follows the young daughter (Ann Carter’s Amy) of Kent Smith’s Ollie and Jane Randolph’s Alice as she develops a friendship with the ghost of Simone Simon’s Irena. It’s a bizarre, low-key premise that’s employed to watchable yet entirely forgettable effect by Gunther V. Fritsch and Robert Wise, as the filmmakers, working from DeWitt Bodeen’s spare screenplay, deliver what essentially amounts to a domestic drama revolving around a misunderstood (and exceedingly lonely) little girl – with the strong performances and exceedingly stylish visuals going a long way towards compensating for a narrative that’s often breathtakingly uneventful. And although the appropriately abbreviated running time is ultimately stretched to its breaking point, The Curse of the Cat People admittedly does close with a suspenseful, gripping final stretch that finally (and satisfactorily) ties an inexplicable subplot in with the central storyline and, in the end, cements the movie’s pace as an endeavor that fares about as well as its hit-and-miss predecessor.

**1/2 out of ****