88 Films UK Blu-ray Synopsis: From Lam Nai-Choi, who made unhinged masterpieces The Seventh Curse and Riki-Oh: The Story of Ricky, comes a film that, somehow, manages to be EVEN MADDER. An evil blob-like extraterrestrial has come to earth with nefarious intentions. Luckily some good aliens are on its trail; a man, a woman and – of course – their fluffy black cat. With wonderful pre-CGI special effects (i.e. rubber galore) and some truly bonkers action (watch out for that cat!), The Cat is part horror, part sci-fi and all WTF? The sane and rational folks at 88 Films are proud to present your new favourite crazy movie. (89 Mins)

 

Deltamac HK DVD Synopsis: For nights, disturbing noise comes from an upstairs flat. Lee Don decides to go up and he sees there an old man, a young girl and a black cat. But Lee Don discovers the next day that the flat is completely deserted. A cat's innards, however, are left behind. Lee Don tells this to Wisely, famous for his adventures. Wisely suspects the black cat as the culprit. So he sets out to catch the cat with a very talented dog. The cat's tail is broken in a fight. Everybody is astounded when the laboratory reports the tail shows the cat is a least 60 years old but no cat ever lives that long... (89 Mins)

 

Views: An adaptation of the Old Cat novel by the late Ni Kuang – only one of his many stories on the adventurer known as Wisely – The Cat tells the tale of a moggy that has arrived on earth with a young alien girl and her minder, on the run from another alien known as the Star-Killer that is out to finish them and has the ability to reanimate it's human victims. To get home safely, the trio must find two relics that will help beam a signal back to their planet and, in turn, make the Cat powerful enough to destroy the enemy. Naturally, the Star-Killer soon catches up and, with the help of Hong Kong adventurer Wisely, the aliens must work together to put a stop to the monstrous murderer!

 

Taking some cues from Hollywood hits such as The Blob (1988) and The Terminator (1984) among others, The Cat is far from the perfect movie but wins points for delivering something that is quite literally out of this world – bizarre on every level, and highly creative regardless of it's budgetary constraints. Produced by Golden Harvest and Paragon Films, The Cat was penned by the one and only Gordon Chan – prolific writer and director of films such as King Of Beggars (1992), Fist Of Legend (1994), Thunderbolt (1995), 2000 A.D. (2000), The Medallion (2003) and many more. Initially created for Alex Cheung to direct, creative differences soon saw the reigns being handed over to the controversial and underrated Lam Nai Choi who had just wrapped the cult classic, The Story Of Ricky, for Golden Harvest around this time. Of course, Lam had already been directing for a good decade beforehand with titles like Brothers From The Walled City (1981) and Men From The Gutter (1983) for Shaw Brothers, and films such as The Seventh Curse (1986), Her Vengeance (1988), The Peacock King (1989) and Erotic Ghost Story (1990) for Golden Harvest – among others. As it turns out, The Cat would be his last project to date before Lam would leave the industry after 16 years as a cinematographer, director and writer...

 

While I grew up watching Sam Hui as Wisely in the awesome Legend Of The Golden Pearl/Legend Of Wisely (1987) many years ago, I was aware of Ni Kuang's prolific stories on the character and did enjoy other films such as his very own The Seventh Curse (1986), Bury Me High (1991) and The Wesley's Mysterious File (2002) about the adventurer – revealing actors such as Chow Yun Fat, Chin Kar Lok, and Andy Lau in the much-loved role. But for The Cat, Lam cast Waise Lee as Wisely. And while I feel he did a fine job in the role, I can't help but wish that Lam Nai Choi and Golden Harvest had called upon the services of Chow Yun Fat once again to reprise his role of the hero after playing him in their aforementioned Wisely flick, The Seventh Curse, only a five years earlier. Perhaps then, The Cat would have gotten a little more attention.

 

Here, Lee is joined by the beautiful Gloria Yip, a popular Hong Kong actress who had already appeared in hits such as Chicken & Duck Talk (1988), Miracles (1989), Demoness From Thousand Years (1990), Saviour Of The Soul (1991), The Blue Jean Monster (1991) and three of Lam Nai Choi's earlier titles – The Peacock King (1989), Saga Of The Phoenix (1989) and The Story Of Ricky (1992). Although she was around 19 by the time she starred in The Cat, Yip Wan Yee looked about 6 or 7 years younger; a trait used to her advantage for many years to come. While she's always a joy to watch on-screen, Gloria has little to do except cuddle the cat, scream and look pretty. Her minder Errol is played by the fantastic Lau Siu Ming, a prolific star of Hong Kong cinema who had already appeared in many great films including The Butterfly Murders (1979), The Sword (1980), A Chinese Ghost Story 1-3 (1987/90/91), Project A 2 (1987), Police Story 2 (1988), Swordsman (1990), Casino Tycoon (1992) and so much more. Interestingly though, he is replaced by Project A (1983) co-star Kwan Hoi San – an equally prolific actor and highly recognisable face of Hong Kong cinema – in the Japanese version of the same movie. Shot side-by-side with the Hong Kong version for the Japanese market and known as Monster War, this 'other' take on the story offers a whole new experience swapping many of the main characters for Japanese stars, except Gloria Yip, and adding other Hong Kong actors in newly created (and often random) roles. While not as bloody and violent as the original, it still makes for quite an interesting watch!

 

The great Philip Kwok Chui – the Shaw Brothers legend and Venom Mob star that needs no introduction – plays a hardened detective and close friend of Wisely. But Kwok's character soon gets possessed by the Star-Killer and goes on a killing mission akin to that of Arnie as the Terminator. Interestingly, he is replaced by Tan Lap Man for the Japanese version, and had starred in Lam's Erotic Ghost Story just prior to this. It's a fun role that also sees him double-duties as the action-choreographer of the film; a job he had done for Lam Nai Choi on The Peacock King (1989), Erotic Ghost Story (1990) and The Story Of Ricky (1991), but also on classic films such as A Chinese Ghost Story (1987), The Big Heat (1988), Once A Thief (1991), Zen Of Sword (1992), In The Line Of Duty 7: Sea Wolves (1992), Hard Boiled (1992) and so much more including most of his Shaw Brothers titles. While there is very little martial artistry in The Cat, Kwok stills offers up enough fun action moments including the outrageous kung-fu battle between the cat and a massive dog set in a junk yard, which is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the film. Other actors such as Lawrence Lau, Christine Ng, Kong Kong, and Simon Cheung co-star. Producer Chau Lam makes a cameo as a university doctor while Wisley creator, Ni Kuang, pops-up as the dog owner in what is one of the most over-acted roles of his short-lived acting career...

 

Recently released as a Deluxe Edition Blu-ray with a gorgeous new 2K restoration by 88 Films, The Cat has never looked better and really highlights the gorgeous cinematography and impressive practical effects put to use that reminded me a lot of those seen in Lam's earlier film, The Peacock King (1989) and it's sequel Saga Of The Phoenix (1989). As part of that same release, 88 Films give fans the chance to check out that crazy alternate Japanese version, delivered in SD but still very watchable. This is definitely worth checking out after you have experienced the original piece, of course. While The Cat may not be for everyone, it still entertains and proves to be a unique experience for many reasons – especially from a time when Hong Kong cinema was saturated with insane action films. And although it may not be my favourite piece from Lam Nai Choi, it's only fair to say that I still really enjoy The Cat and am very happy that it got the release it did courtesy of 88 Films!

 

Overall: Bonkers, creative and wonderfully made, The Cat is not perfect but still proves to be highly entertaining!

 

88 Films Blu-ray Extras: 2K Restoration, Audio Commentary by Frank Djeng, Alternate Japanese Version (SD), Interview with Gordon Chan, Image Gallery, Trailer

 

Deltamac DVD Extras: Trailers

​

Watch my unboxing video for the 88 Films release HERE

​

Support the site by getting your copy HERE