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IMDbPro

The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing

  • 19731973
  • PGPG
  • 1h 54m
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
Western story about a defiant wife who leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws.
Play trailer2:48
1 Video
55 Photos
  • Romance
  • Western
Western story about a defiant wife who leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws.Western story about a defiant wife who leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws.Western story about a defiant wife who leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws.
IMDb RATING
6.2/10
1.5K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Richard C. Sarafian
  • Writers
    • Marilyn Durham(novel)
    • Eleanor Perry(screenplay)
    • William W. Norton(contributing writer)
  • Stars
    • Burt Reynolds
    • Sarah Miles
    • Lee J. Cobb
Top credits
  • Director
    • Richard C. Sarafian
  • Writers
    • Marilyn Durham(novel)
    • Eleanor Perry(screenplay)
    • William W. Norton(contributing writer)
  • Stars
    • Burt Reynolds
    • Sarah Miles
    • Lee J. Cobb
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 18User reviews
    • 17Critic reviews
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 2:48
    Trailer

    Photos55

    "Man Who Love Cat Dancing, The" Premiere, 1973 Clint Eastwood
    "Man Who Loved Cat Dancing, The" Premiere Dinah Shore and Burt Reynolds, 1973
    "Man Who Loved Cat Dancing, The" Premiere Burt Reynolds and Dinal Shore, 1973
    The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    Sarah Miles and Jack Warden in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    Sarah Miles in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    Burt Reynolds and Sarah Miles in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)
    Burt Reynolds and Sarah Miles in The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Burt Reynolds
    Burt Reynolds
    • Jay Grobartas Jay Grobart
    Sarah Miles
    Sarah Miles
    • Catherine Crockeras Catherine Crocker
    Lee J. Cobb
    Lee J. Cobb
    • Harvey Lapchanceas Harvey Lapchance
    Jack Warden
    Jack Warden
    • Dawesas Dawes
    George Hamilton
    George Hamilton
    • Willard Crockeras Willard Crocker
    Bo Hopkins
    Bo Hopkins
    • Billy Bowenas Billy Bowen
    Robert Donner
    Robert Donner
    • Dubas Dub
    Sandy McPeak
    Sandy McPeak
    • Benas Ben
    • (as Sandy Kevin)
    Larry Littlebird
    • Iron Knifeas Iron Knife
    Nancy Malone
    Nancy Malone
    • Sudieas Sudie
    Jay Silverheels
    Jay Silverheels
    • The Chiefas The Chief
    Jay Varela
    Jay Varela
    • Charlie Bentas Charlie Bent
    Owen Bush
    Owen Bush
    • Conductoras Conductor
    Larry Finley
    Larry Finley
    • Bartenderas Bartender
    Sutero García Jr.
    • Dream Speakeras Dream Speaker
    James Hampton
    James Hampton
    • Jimmyas Jimmy
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Richard C. Sarafian
    • Writers
      • Marilyn Durham(novel)
      • Eleanor Perry(screenplay)
      • William W. Norton(contributing writer) (uncredited)
    • All cast & crew
    • See more cast details at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Sarah Miles' found her business manager/boyfriend David Whiting dead in her Gila Bend, AZ, motel room during the film's location shooting. The death made headlines around the world. "Time Magazine" on 26 March 1973 reported, "Pills and bottles were scattered around his body, and bruises and a bloody cut were found on his head". The night prior to the discovery of his body Whiting had allegedly assaulted Miles after she had come back late at night from a birthday party for Burt Reynolds. Reynolds let Miles stay in his room for protection. She testified that Whiting had "got ahold of me and began throwing me about the room". Reynolds, when he saw Miles after her nanny, who had overheard the confrontation, had called him, was quoted as saying, "Christ Almighty, you're a mess!" Miles' injuries allegedly included a bloody nose, a bruised forehead and a cut lip. The official cause of Whiting's death as ruled by the coroner/county medical examiner was suicide by overdose of the drugs Methaqualone, Benadryl and a Librium-type drug. Reportedly, Miles and Reynolds did not wish to testify at the inquest one month after the incident but were forced to when Whiting's mother, Mrs. Louise Campbell, successfully obtained a court order compelling them to testify. According to the "Time" article, " . . . a pharmacologist hired by Whiting's mother said that the amount of methaqualone in Whiting's bloodstream need not have been fatal. Left unexplained was how Whiting's blood came to be on a pillowcase, towel, tissues and the washbasin in his own room, as well as on a blue sweater he had apparently been wearing. Also unaccounted for were the severe cut on the back of his head and scratches on his stomach, chest and knuckles." It was later revealed that Miles and Whiting had been having an affair, and this, together with the resulting publicity, contributed to the disintegration of her marriage to Robert Bolt.
    • Goofs
      During the opening credits Catherine is riding "side saddle" but her legs are both on the right side of the horse, which is the "wrong" side for an English ladies' saddle. The film is flopped in this shot as later she has her legs on the proper side.
    • Quotes

      Jay: [to Catherine, at the campsite] Make some coffee.

      Catherine Crocker: I don't want to make coffee, thank you...

      Jay: I don't give a damn what you want. Make some coffee.

      Catherine Crocker: [Fumbling with the coffee pot, obviously clueless] I don't know how to make coffee. I'm sorry.

    • Connections
      Referenced in The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson: 11th Anniversary Show (1973)

    User reviews18

    Review
    Top review
    6/10
    Decent Western story about a refined lady/Sarah Miles who joins a gang of robbers led by Burt Reynolds
    This exciting Western is a reasonable engaging tale in which a wealthy woman traveling by herself on horseback leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws who have robbed a safe . At first , after a chance encounter , a beautiful lady called Catherine Crocker (Sarah Miles) recently escaped from her abusive hubby becomes involved with a band of train robbers led by Jay Grobart (Burt Reynolds , this was one of his first romantic love-stories on the screen) and three other men : Dawes (Jack Warden) , Billy Bowen (Bo Hopkins) and an Indian named Charlie Bent (Varela) who have carried out a robbing a train of its Wells Fargo cargo of $100,000 . In their escape from the crime scene they are chased by a motley group of bounty hunters . Jay has the ordinary problems of managing the three bandits , Dawes and Billy in particular who want to rape the attractive lady . In meantime , they are pursued by a posse led by the tough Harvey Lapchance (Lee J. Cobb), including a mining executive , Willard Crocker (George Hamilton) who results to be Catherine's husband . But the go-riding gets harder , as the bunch fall out among themselves and things go worse .

    The plot is plain and simple , a dangerous gang on the lam are forced out of circumstance to take along an elegant lady -who holds a dark secret- , against her will , as she , like them , is running away ; while she is harassed and finally falls in love with the main star . As the picture reveals itself to be a romance and a throughly love story . The phrase "Cat Dancing" of the film and source novel's title refers to the name of the first wife of this movie's central character Jay performed by Burt Reynolds . It's a love on the run in which the protagonists , Jay/Burt and Catherine/Sarah , along the journey learn more about what is under the surface , and both of whom start to fall for each other ; as their tragic pasts coming close to making us care . Good interpretation all around . Burt Reynolds gives a passable acting as an outlaw on the run after avenging his spouse's murder and who has a posse on his trail . Burt Reynolds and Jack Warden apparently insisted on doing their own stunts for this movie . That's why the production filming was shut-down for a week when the movie's star Burt Reynolds was injured on the set from a stunt fight with Jack Warden . This movie is one of a number of screen westerns that Burt Reynolds made during the mid-late 1960s and early 1970s , these movie westerns include Navajo Joe (1966) ; 100 rifles (1969) ; Sam Whisky (1969) and this one . Sarah Miles is acceptable as Catherine Crocker , she was only cast in the lead role just a short time before production started shooting . Support cast is pretty good , such as : the good-looking George Hamilton as Willard Crocker , Lee J . Cobb as Harvey Lapchance , the investigator for Wells Fargo who has a posse of men on their command . Furthermore , Bo Hopkins , Robert Donner , Nancy Malone and Jay Silverheels who played several times the Indian role . Michel Legrand was originally hired to compose the musical score for the film but studio executives informed him that his score was not what they felt the film needed and that he was being dismissed, being replaced by the great John Williams . It packs a colorful and evocative cinematography by Harry Stradling Jr.

    The motion picture was professionally directed by Richard C Sarafian , though Steven Spielberg William Norton and Brian G. Hutton both declined offers to direct this movie , as Sarafian became this movie's director after the original director left the project . Sarafian was a good craftsman . While employed as a reporter in Kansas City , he met the director, Robert Altman, who hired Sarafian as his assistant. Sarafian has a fruitful career making TV episodes and films and directing a classic iconic movie : Vanishing Point¨ (1971) , as his car chase sequence served as inspiration for Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof (2007) . Richard portrayed two real-life Mafia figures: Jack Dragna in ¨Bugsy¨ (1991) and Paul Castellano in ¨Gotti¨ (1996). And directed a lot of dramas and thrillers as ¨Gangster Wars¨ , ¨The next man¨, ¨Solar Crisis¨, ¨Run Wild , Run Free¨, ¨Terror at Black falls¨, ¨Fragment of Fear¨ , ¨Street Justice¨ and ¨Eye of the tiger¨
    helpful•4
    0
    • ma-cortes
    • Dec 1, 2016

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • October 31, 1973 (Sweden)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Der Mann, der die Katzen tanzen ließ
    • Filming locations
      • Gila Bend, Arizona, USA
    • Production company
      • Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 54 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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