by Linda Kay

Also Known As: The Loving Touch

Directed by: Robert Vincent O’Neil

Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this film!

Synopsis: Kenneth Alden (Lawrence Montaigne) is a psychiatrist who hypnotizes a psychotic, murderous patient to commit a murder for his own benefit in this sexploitation film.

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): When Alden first interviews the killer, Marco (Frank Cuva), Marco recounts the murder of an artist named Patricia (Diane Jones), referred to as “the one with the cat.” “A big orange yellow cat,” Marco recalls under hypnosis. We flash back to a scene of Patricia and her cat, Oscar, who is sitting beside and being petted by a nude female model. Oscar is a ginger tabby cat with a white chest and paws.

It is clear that the two women are lovers, or at least seriously attracted to each other. Oscar is just sitting by the model, looking disinterested as Patricia caresses the breasts of the small sculpture she is making.

Patricia walks over and picks up Oscar and pets him as the camera moves in for an extremely blurry close up and the sound of a cat purring is dubbed over.

A cut in the scene shows time has passed as Patricia holds Oscar outside her front door and waves goodbye to the model (at least we assume it is Oscar, although this cat actor does not have any bold white markings).

She awkwardly sets the cat down on the front step and warns that she doesn’t want any more trouble from him (one wonders what trouble such a mellow cat could cause?)

Patricia is sleeping in bed when Marco breaks into her home, placing Oscar inside first. Oscar meows and wakes up Patricia who is then attacked and killed.

Final Mewsings: Unlike humans, cat actors don’t get to choose the movie projects in which they appear.

Many thanks to Nick Wale for letting us know about the cat in this film.

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