That Darn Cat!

"It takes a Siamese secret agent to unravel the PURR-fect crime!"

1965 1h 56m EN

👍

6.6

SOLID

★6.6TMDB · 199

FamilyCrimeComedy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A young woman suspects foul play when her cat comes home wearing a wristwatch. Convincing the FBI, though, and catching the bad guys is tougher than she imagined.

“It takes a Siamese secret agent to unravel the PURR-fect crime!”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

Disney PlusSubscription

Cast

Hayley Mills
Patti Randall
Dean Jones
Zeke Kelso
Dorothy Provine
Ingrid Randall
Roddy McDowall
Gregory Benson
Frank Gorshin
Iggy
Neville Brand
Dan
Elsa Lanchester
Mrs. MacDougall
William Demarest
Mr. MacDougall

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Robert Stevenson
Writers: Bill Walsh, Gordon Gordon, Mildred Gordon
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 7

ERA

Did you know

61 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Edward Colman. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Robert F. Brunner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 7

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Cotton Warburton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 7

CAST

Did you know

Hayley Mills and Dean Jones and Dorothy Provine carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 7

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "It takes a Siamese secret agent to unravel the PURR-fect crime!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 7

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0059793 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Robert Stevenson directs. Edward Colman behind the camera. Robert F. Brunner scores. Cotton Warburton cuts. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

161 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Directed by Robert Stevenson, shot by Edward Colman. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
3Original score by Robert F. Brunner. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
4Editor Cotton Warburton shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5Hayley Mills and Dean Jones and Dorothy Provine carry the top of the cast.
6Marketing tagline: "It takes a Siamese secret agent to unravel the PURR-fect crime!".
7IMDB entry: tt0059793 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
8Classified under 10 themes, including "cat", "kidnapping", "hostage", "map".

The technical file

Cinematography: Edward Colman
Original score: Robert F. Brunner
Editing: Cotton Warburton
Runtime: 116 min · 1h 56m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Box office: $28,062,222
Original language: EN
Certification (US): G
IMDB: That Darn Cat! (1965)

Also by

Robert Stevenson

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2020-04-14
★ 6/10
What time is it Kitty Kat? That Darn Cat! is out of Disney Productions and directed by Robert Stevenson. Collectively written by Bill Walsh and The Gordons (Mildred & Gordon), it stars Hayley Mills, Dean Jones, Dorothy Provine, Roddy McDowall, Neville Brand and Frank Gorshin. Music is by Robert F. Brunner and cinematography by Edward Colman. When DC the Siamese cat is found to have a watch around his neck, one of his owners, Pattii Randall (Mills), alerts the FBI to the possibility it's a clue to a recent kidnapping. Cue much malarkey as humans and cat try to solve the crime whilst staying one step/paw ahead of the criminals... Utterly harmless fluff from the House of the Mouse, That Darn Cat! is basically a live action cartoon. Away from the wonderful cat(s) performance - and the skillful capturing of said cat(s) reactions to situations - there's no great technical genius here. Nothing wrong with that, this is good old fashioned entertainment for the kids to chuckle along with and for the adults to smile at. Yes some of the performances are twee or precious, and the story is silly, but it's honest family fare that's also boosted by Ed Wynn and Elsa Lanchester in secondary support slots. 6.5/10
r96sk2020-07-25
★ 8/10
Funny, probably the most I've laughed at a Disney film so far. <em>'That Darn Cat!'</em> is an entertaining production. The premise, whilst not incredibly executed, is amusing and very watchable. Cast-wise it's terrific, Hayley Mills and Dean Jones certainly raise everyone else up but all the characters are astutely cast. DC the cat is adorable, too. Mills plays Patti while Jones portrays Kelso. They both work very well together, I enjoyed both performances. Ed Wynn has, like in <em>'Those Calloways'</em>, a good short showing. No others stand out per se, but they all bring little things to their respective roles. I do wish they would've done more with the villains though, given they were nicely cast. What they give is decent, but they definitely could've played a bigger part. The film probably runs 10-15 minutes too long also. You should watch this if you get the opportunity, it makes for fun viewing.