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The Cat o' Nine Tails is the second film in Argento's "animal trilogy" and for some reason this trilogy is virtually devoid of the crazed, blood-thristy animals of his later films. There isn't even a cat o' one tail to wreak havoc on anyone (see Inferno or Two Evil Eyes for some real cat terror). The mystery unfolds around a gumshoe reporter and a blind old man, a killer is stacking victims and they may have the key to find his identity. The reporter is played by James Franciscus, who is sort of like the poor man's Charlton Heston. He is arrogant, no-nonsense, and doesn't give a damn about your mother's ravioli (actual line of dialogue). Karl Malden adds great support as the blind old man who wields a cane sword and crossword puzzles with equal gusto. There's really only one lusty lady in this film, Catherine Spaak who plays Anna. She struts around in swanky little outfits, but her hair kind of reminds me of Carol Brady. Not a good thing. Unlike his later films, there's not much in way of blood and scares, it's more Hitchcock than Bava. It does feature a guy getting hit in the face by a moving train, and a rather brutal fight scene at the end. But the real high water mark of the film is Argento's use of green and red. Every scene features these colors prominently which adds a certain wild mania to the proceedings. Add to that a spaghetti western-meets-horror musical score from Ennio Morricone and you got a top notch giallo from the maestro's early days.
Argento score card:
Blood - 3
Scares - 5
Music - 7
Lusty women - 4
Camera work - 6
Color palette - 8
Crazed animals - 1 (one point for the rats)
Total score: 34/70
