A Thousand and One Nights (1969)

Original Title: Sen’ya ichiya monogatari

Directed by: Eiichi Yamamoto

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

Synopsis: A nomadic water vendor named Aldin (voiced by Yukio Aoshima) falls in love with a slave girl named Milliam (Kyôko Kishida) which leads to a series of wild adventures.

Cartoon Cats: After rescuing Milliam from the slave block, she and Aldin find a seemingly abandoned palace. As they walk through Aldin comments that there isn’t anyone there, not even a cat. At that moment a small, fluffy cat jumps in front of them.

A Thousand and One Nights - small gray fluffy cat in front of Aldin and Milliam

The cat stretches, yawns, shakes its head and trots away. “Well, a cat at least,” Aldin smiles.

A Thousand and One Nights - small gray fluffy cat yawning in front of Aldin and Milliam
A Thousand and One Nights - small gray fluffy cat walking away from Aldin and Milliam
A Thousand and One Nights - small gray fluffy cat jumping in front of Aldin and Milliam, yawning, stretching then trotting away animated gif

Later in the film Aldin has become the notorious pirate Sinbad and challenges the Sultan for the throne. They enter into a competition in which each one presents their most prized treasures for comparison. At one point Sinbad produces a beautiful woman who dances provocatively to the Sultan. Suddenly a gray cat appears, hissing angrily.

A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat hissing on step

The woman flees but the cat leaps after her.

A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat leaping after dancing woman
A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat leaping onto dancing woman

Sinbad orders his men to get water as the cat continues to attack and bite the woman.

A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat attacking dancing woman
A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat attacking dancing woman

When the men set a large vase of water nearby the woman leaps into it, revealing she is a mermaid.

A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat leaping away from mermaid
A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat looking angrily at vase of water
A Thousand and One Nights - gray cat attacking dancing woman who is actually mermaid animated gif

Final Mewsings: Cats go nuts over fish . . . even half a fish!

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