The Man Who Loved Cat Dancing (1973)

Western story about a defiant wife who leaves her husband to take up riding with outlaws.

Director:

Richard C. Sarafian

Writers:

Marilyn Durham (novel), Eleanor Perry (screenplay)

Stars:

Burt Reynolds, Sarah Miles, Lee J. Cobb

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Burt Reynolds	...	Jay Grobart
Sarah Miles	...	Catherine Crocker
Lee J. Cobb	...	Harvey Lapchance
Jack Warden	...	Dawes
George Hamilton	...	Willard Crocker
Bo Hopkins	...	Billy Bowen
Robert Donner	...	Dub
Sandy McPeak	...	Ben (as Sandy Kevin)
Larry Littlebird	...	Iron Knife
Nancy Malone	...	Sudie
Jay Silverheels	...	The Chief
Jay Varela	...	Charlie Bent
Owen Bush	...	Conductor
Larry Finley	...	Bartender
Sutero García Jr.	...	Dream Speaker

Storyline

It's the frontier of the American west. Shortly after being released from prison where he was serving a sentence for murder, Jay Grobart leads a band of three other men - Dawes, Billy Bowen and an Indian named Charlie Bent - in robbing a train of its Wells Fargo cargo of $100,000. In their escape from the scene, they are forced out of circumstance to take along a young woman, against her will, she who is traveling by herself on horseback. She is Mrs. Willard Crocker - Catherine - who they can tell is wealthy. Although they do not let her go, she vows that she will not tell the authorities about them as she, like them, is running away. As Jay, the leader, embarks on his next mission - to fulfill the reason he stole the money - he has the problems of managing the three men, Dawes and Billy in particular who are solely out for their own selfish wants which now includes their carnal wants with Catherine, and making sure Catherine does not escape. But as they spend more time together and ...

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Plot Keywords:

female nudity | wells fargo | mining executive | man on a mission | runaway wife | 

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Taglines:

Two women loved him. One died for him. One killed for him.

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Genres:

Romance | Western

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 October 1973 (Sweden)

Also Known As:

A férfi, aki szerette a táncoló macskát

Filming Locations:

Ajo, Arizona, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

114 min 123 min (Turner library print)

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Michel Legrand was originally hired to compose the musical score. He composed his score in Paris in May 1973 and recorded a little over 20 minutes of it in Hollywood the following month, but director Richard C. Sarafian and studio executives James Aubrey and Daniel Melnick informed him that his score was not what they felt the film needed, and dismissed him.

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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.

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Quotes

The Chief: [Smoking a cigar as Jay and Catherine are visiting his tent] The cigar was one of the white man's "good" inventions.

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Connections

Referenced in Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974)

User Reviews

The new-fangled Old West, with anti-heroes, bloodshed, rape and robbery...

The kind of cynical '70s western that might have turned John Wayne's stomach: runaway wife Sarah Miles (as Cat, née Catherine) hitches a ride with a gang of scurrilous train robbers, and ends up falling in love with their leader. Overwrought picture gives Miles in particular an insulting role (she can't even mount a horse without falling off), and Jack Warden's scummy Dawes gets a bullet wound he'll never forget, but leading man Burt Reynolds slides right through this without ever leaving a trace he was here. Outdoor locations and colorful support from Lee J. Cobb gives mangy, depressing film a slight boost. *1/2 from ****