by Linda Kay

English Translation: Boredom

Also Known As: The Empty Canvas

Directed by: Damiano Damiani

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

Synopsis: Spoiled wanna-be painter Dino (Horst Buchholz), who depends on handouts from his mother (Bette Davis), becomes infatuated with the artists’ model Cecilia (Catherine Spaak) he has seen frequenting a neighboring painter’s flat.

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): The elderly neighbor, whose name is Balestrieri (Leonida Repaci) owns a longhair tabby cat who frequents the hallway outside his apartment. Early in the film Dino opens his door to find Cecilia standing in the corridor petting the kitty.

After Balestrieri passes away (purportedly while making love to Cecilia), Dino spots the cat outside the man’s door, scratching to get inside. The door turns out to be slightly open so the kitty slips into the apartment.

Curious to see the artwork of his former neighbor, Dino follows the cat into the apartment. The well-trained cat actor sits patiently, not even indulging in the dish of food on the floor, as Dino passes. The cat is not seen again and it’s not clear if anyone came to take over care for the kitty, although Balestrieri’s wife shows up to pack his things late in the film.

Final Mewsings: Hopefully the kitty found a new home!

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

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