The Cat O’ Nine Tails

Following the success of his debut feature, The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, distributor Titanus tasked writer / director Dario Argento with delivering a follow-up in short order. The resulting film, granted a greatly enhanced budget and heralded in its US marketing campaign as nine times more suspenseful than its predecessor, was The Cat O Nine Tails.

When a break-in occurs at a secretive genetics institute, blind puzzle-maker Franco Arn (Karl Malden, Patton, One-Eyed Jacks), who overheard an attempt to blackmail one of the institutes scientists shortly before the robbery, teams up with intrepid reporter Carlo Giordani (James Franciscus, Beneath the Planet of the Apes) to crack the case. But before long the bodies begin to pile up and the two amateur sleuths find their own lives imperilled in their search for the truth. And worse still, Lori (Cinzia De Carolis, Cannibal Apocalypse), Francos young niece, may also be in the killers sights

This second entry in the so-called Animal Trilogy found Argento further refining his distinctive style and cementing his reputation as the master of the giallo thriller. Co-starring Catherine Spaak (Il Sorpasso) and Rada Rassimov (Baron Blood), and featuring another nerve-jangling score by the great Ennio Morricone (The Bird with the Crystal Plumage, The Good, The Bad and the Ugly), The Cat O Nine Tails remains one of Argentos most suspenseful and underrated films.

SPECIAL EDITION CONTENTS

Brand new 4K restoration of the film from the original camera negative

High Definition Blu-ray (1080p) presentation

Original mono Italian and English soundtracks

Newly translated English subtitles for the Italian soundtrack

Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing for the English soundtrack

New audio commentary by critics Alan Jones and Kim Newman

New interviews with co-writer/director Dario Argento, co-writer Dardano Sacchetti, actress Cinzia De Carolis and production manager Angelo Iacono

Script pages for the lost original ending, translated into English for the first time

Original Italian and international theatrical trailers

Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Candice Tripp