Allied Artists Pictures
Starring: George Sanders, Jean Kent, Corinne Calvet
Directed by: W. Lee Wilder

Cat Out of the Bag Alert!  This review contains some spoilers for this film!

Synopsis: Henri Landru (George Sanders) has a thing for nightclub singer Odette (Corinne Calvet) but to keep her happy he must find a means of income which he does by murdering wealthy women he seduces.

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): One of the woman Henri sets his sights on is Jeanette (Jean Kent) who he intercepts while she’s placing a classified ad for a male companion. Jeanette owns a Siamese cat which is seen on a table in her home.

Henri offers to take Jeanette to his villa and they go to catch a train. Jeanette takes the Siamese cat with her.

At the villa, Henri brings Jeanette breakfast in bed. The Siamese cat enters the scene strangely, looking as if it had been thrown into the shot from off screen.

Jeanette asks where the cat, named Max, is. Henri spots the cat in the corner and says, “I don’t think he likes me very much.” Jeanette laughs and explains that Max is a she.

Later Jeanette carries Max into the kitchen where Henri is waiting with a large fire in the oversized oven.

Jeanette drinks a sherry which Henri has given her, not realizing it is poisoned. When she falls she is somehow careful not to land on Max.

Max goes to the open window as Henri starts to dispose of the body. After the deed is done, Henri sees Max hanging around outside the window and flicks his towel at the pane, scaring away the cat.

After this Max is seen outside the window as Henri committs numerous murders in the villa. She even witnesses the murder of Odette.

Finally the sister of one of the victims traces Henri to the villa and brings the police. Henri tries to escape by running through the woods in a rainstorm. Suddenly Max the cat screeches and jumps from a nearby tree, attacking the murderer! Whether or not the cat is attacking on behalf of her murdered owner or because Henri left her outside without feeding her is anyone’s guess.

Henri tries to kill Max but is stopped by an officer. Max runs away and is not present when Henri is executed.

Final Mewsings: It’s a shame cats don’t know how to call the police.

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