That Darn Cat!
by Robert Stevenson
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DVD Cover Information
Actor: Dean Jones, Dorothy Provine, Hayley Mills, Neville Brand, Roddy McDowallDirector: Robert Stevenson
Cinematographer: Edward Colman
Producer: Bill Walsh
Writer: Bill Walsh
Producer: Ron Miller
Producer: Walt Disney
Writer: Gordon Gordon
Writer: Mildred Gordon
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 2.0 Mono
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.33:1
Running Time: 112 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2005-05-03
Audience Rating: G (General Audience)
Studio: Walt Disney Home Entertainment
Movie Reviews of That Darn Cat!
Movie Review: "He's a sly old codger, an artful dodger, a scrounger unsurpassed..." (referring to the cat, of course, and not Ed Wynn)
Summary: 4 Stars
Forty years plus later, THAT DARN CAT! still holds up very well as a live action Disney movie. I saw it again recently, after not having seen it for many years, and it's just as entertaining and silly, although for the most part not so dumbed-down silly that it becomes aggravating. Based on the book UNDERCOVER CAT by the Gordons (That Darn Cat AKA Undercover Cat) and with the theme song sung by Bobby Darin, several things work to make this a fun flick. First and prominently, there's Hayley Mills, who spent a huge chunk of her teenhood making Disney movies (Pollyanna (Vault Disney Collection), the classic PARENT TRAP (The Parent Trap (1961) and The Parent Trap II (1986): 2-Movie Collection (2-Disc Set)), In Search of the Castaways, Summer Magic, The Moon-Spinners). THAT DARN CAT! marks the end of 19-year-old Hayley Mills's Disney run, but she exits on a high note. To make up for her departure, lanky everyman Dean Jones makes his Disney debut and would go on to be the featured star in ensuing Disney pictures. In this movie Hayley is as warm and plucky as ever, and Dean brings his likeability and his talent for physical comedy. Both are terrific, someone in charge being wise enough to ensure enough screentime for these two to do their thing.
But it's also about the cat. At exactly 9pm the always ravenous blue-eyed Siamese cat D.C. (for Darn Cat!) goes on the prowl and makes his rounds, scavenging for food, getting into messes, getting the neighbors all ornery. But when D.C. comes home one evening wearing an expandable wristwatch with part of the word "Help" scratched on it, her teenaged owner Patti Randall (Mills) makes an improbable leap of logic: that the watch is somehow linked to the daring bank robberies and kidnapping so featured in all the newspapers. I guess back in the '60s one can just stroll into the FBI offices and walk out with an FBI guy, because this is exactly what Patti does. Except that the agent assigned, Zeke Kelso (Jones), happens to be highly allergic to cats.
There's a bit of anthropomorphism thrown in, with D.C. seemingly able to understand most of the conversations going on around him. And certainly D.C. is a clever cat, and there's almost a cartoon feel in how he outsmarts the local backyard mutt. We also get absurd shenanigans with Agent Kelso attempting to take the cat's pawprints and the FBI guys tasked with surveillance detail on D.C. But thankfully the cat doesn't monopolize the movie. And, except for Kelso's attempts to fingerprint D.C. (a scene which feels really contrived), the frankly farfetched plot developments generate the humor. The funniest sequence takes place in a drive-in theater as manager Mel Cooley chases down Kelso and the cat and has ungodly amounts of icky concession stand foods dumped on him. There's also a very vague stab at romance but that gives way in favor of getting the plot moving.
Incidental characters also provide comedy support and generally liven up the place, particularly Elsa Manchester and William Demarest as, respectively, the snoopy neighbor and her hearing-impaired husband. And, yes, the snoop gets her just desserts. Roddy McDowall plays a stuffed shirt who courts Patti's older sister; Ed Wynn shows up in one scene as a nervous jeweler; and Frank Gorshin (later, the Riddler in the Batman show) is interesting as a fidgety bank robber. A dichotomy regarding Gorshin's character is that while he's the one pushing to kill off the hostage bank teller, he's a big softie for cats. By the way, another element which elevates the film is that the bad guys aren't portrayed as bumbling types but rather as fairly smart ne-er-do-wells. They probably would've gotten away with their crimes... if not for That. Darn. Cat! And who plans for cats?
So I cut my teeth on Disney flicks and grew up on Hayley Mills and Dean Jones, Fred MacMurray and Kurt Russell. Hayley Mills was excellent in all of her Disney pictures, so I'm not too surprised that, although not as timeless as THE PARENT TRAP, THAT DARN CAT! decades later has managed to retain its magic and its watchability. Even the more sophisticated, more savvy kids of today will giggle themeselves silly at THAT DARN CAT! The only down side to this, really, is that we're still waiting for a dvd release with the original theatrical wide screen format. Why dole out the skimpy, Disney?
Summary of That Darn Cat!
The fur flies when a smart Siamese cat goes undercover and Hayley Mills and Dean Jones team up for mystery, adventure, and wild comedy on Disney DVD. When the irrepressible and always hungry D.C. (Darn Cat) turns up with a wristwatch for a collar, it becomes a tip-off to an unsolved robbery and kidnapping. You don't know who's tailing who as nosy neighbors, jealous boyfriends, and a highly allergic FBI agent play a game of cat and mouse to crack the baffling case. Don't miss the spectacular supporting cast featuring Dorothy Provine, Roddy McDowall, Frank Gorshin, and Ed Wynn, plus 100 purr-cent feline family fun!When a slightly cross-eyed Siamese cat named D.C. (Darn Cat) turns up with a wristwatch around his neck instead of a collar, it could be just the clue the FBI needs to crack a series of bank robberies in this lightweight comedy from Disney. The watch belongs to a bank teller who has been taken hostage. Dean Jones stars as the good-hearted FBI agent assigned to the case. Unfortunately, he is highly allergic to, you guessed it, cats. Hayley Mills is D.C.'s doting owner who hatches a hair-brained scheme to follow D.C.'s every move until he returns to the crooks' hideout where he got the wristwatch. After a lot of sneezing, slapstick, and comedic intrigue, the bank robbers are foiled, the hostage is safe, and everyone is happy. An impressive supporting cast of Frank Gorshin, Elsa Lanchester, Roddy McDowall, and Ed Wynn add to the zaniness. Released in 1965 (and remade in 1997), it is understandably dated, but the performances are fun nonetheless. Hayley Mills is delightful as the determined and unflappable wannabe sleuth, and Dean Jones proves he is adept at physical comedy. This is a movie of little consequence, just a clean, fun diversion that the whole family can watch. The theme song is sung by Bobby Darin. --Peggy Maltby-Etra
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