Comments on: It’s the Cat’s Meow

By: Marisael

Marisael — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 07:29:33 +0000

It is rare that a period piece actually connects us with the present so that we may engage in the past. The art on the set of CM impales the tone of the era, from Kristen’s face, the curl in her hair, the red blood lipstick that runs and the way her clothes drape her body-she is brilliant in her portrayal of the scandal maker…the actors tossed between love and lust and all the Hollywood power that still commands the allure today that only Bogadnovich captures it- in each scene-without milking that scene for drama…Drama pours out of the screen and into the audience seat-and you find yourself sitting next to danger-because the scenarios in Cat’s Meow can happen to anyone. Love trysts and accidental murder, drink and drugs and too much sex or not enough sex bears an eerie message that travels through the ages. If the message in the movie does not create a symbol of Peter’s own life-where death became him-or has become him-this motion picture full of emotion and history-directed by the man whose face bears his tears that remain over decades…the memory of his own love lost that has destroyed the heart of him but not the soul of his work…Marisael

By: Movie_Dearest

Movie_Dearest — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 10:31:05 +0000

I first read about this story in Kenneth Anger’s “Hollywood Babylon” and remember thinking at the time “this would make a great movie!” Two years later it was … well, a movie at least. Not great, but still good.

Anyway, Lumley was awesome in it. Great to see “Patsy Stone” doing drama.

- kch

By: Al Lowe

Al Lowe — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 11:25:49 +0000

Thanks to the Internet newspapers are probably on their way out.

It is not hard to imagine a future college class not only not knowing who Hearst was but also being ignorant as to what newspapers were.

Bogdanovich is probably better known to the current generation for his recurring role in The Sopranos.
Some writers give equal credit to Polly Platt, his first wife, for Bogdanovich’s early film successes. Is this true? How would I know?

I do know that Medusa is right on target when she describes Cat’s Meow as a movie that would appeal to classic movie fans. And probably nobody else. And that is not exactly a huge audience.
That is not true of Citizen Kane, of course, which has always had a wide appeal to everyone.

I always felt sorry for Bogdanovich and have regarded his career as one of Life’s Big What Ifs.
What if…he had not succumbed to the temptation offered by Cybil Shepard (which I admit was hard to resist) and had stayed married to and listened to Polly Platt?

There are plenty of those What If scenarios in Cat’s Meow. And maybe that was what attracted him to the material.

By: Cool Bev

Cool Bev — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:11:30 +0000

I enjoyed this movie, but I can see why it didn’t get much play – it struck me as more competent than good. Izzard didn’t strike any sparks as Chaplin (I suppose he couldn’t have been impish all the time), Hearst and Ince were rather lumpish characters, and so forth.

I did like Lumley as Elinor Glyn – partly because I had just seen “It”, where the real Glyn has a cameo. Also, she was the point-of-view character to some extent. But she also seemed to throw herself into the character a bit more, and gave it some life.

By: debbe

debbe — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 13:24:45 +0000

Good job! I always wondered why Cat’s Meow didnt get more interest. I was fascinated by the movie. There is one scene of Hearst sitting in the narrow hallway of the yacht and all you see is his back and it is very telling. Loved knowing more about this movie…and the real incident.

By: Vincent

Vincent — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 06:34:48 +0000

Dunst indeed made a delightful Davies, really capturing her vivacity despite her relative youth. Haven’t seen “RKO 281,” so I can’t comment on Griffith’s work — but one other noted recent actress has portrayed Davies. It’s Virginia Madsen, who was cast as Marion in the 1985 TV movie “The Hearst And Davies Affair,” with Robert Mitchum (!) portraying Hearst. I recall seeing it on TV and thought it was pretty good, as was Madsen’s performance; I’m sorry it isn’t better known.

By: Medusa

Medusa — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 00:47:58 +0000

I love “The Cat’s Meow” and thanks for giving us the behind-the-scenes scoop of the scandal. I liked Herrmann and Dunst as Hearst and Davies; perhaps better, I think, than James Cromwell and Melanie Griffiths as the pair in the TV movie “RKO 281″. And Izzard was terrific as Chaplin. Not perhaps the consummate portrayal as Robert Downey’s had been, but cheeky nonetheless.

Great to read about this terrific movie that would really appeal to classic movie fans! It’s so creepy to think that Louella Parsons built her career on a dead man, essentially, and was such a bitch, besides.

By: moirafinnie

moirafinnie — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:19:22 +0000

I enjoyed your sifting of the facts surrounding Thomas Ince’s demise and the way it was portrayed in Peter Bogdanovich’s intriguing movie, The Cat’s Meow (2002), (though casting Joanna Lumley as Elinor Glyn flattered the creator of “It” enormously, it was great fun seeing Cary Elwes in an interesting role). Thanks for writing about this lingering mystery.