Cops and Robbersons (1994)

Cops and Robbersons poster

TriStar Pictures
Starring:
 Chevy Chase, Jack Palance
Directed by: Michael Ritchie

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

Synopsis: The Robberson family lives in an idyllic suburbia but their worlds are turned upside down when the police decide to hold a stake out in their house to catch a dangerous crook living next door.

Featured Feline: The Robbersons own a female tabby cat named Caruso who is featured in a scene early in the film. Norman Robberson (Chevy Chase) agrees to the stake out without consulting his wife, Helen (Dianne Wiest). Norman sneaks officers Jake Stone (Jack Palance) and Tony Moore (David Barry Gray) into the house but they are close to being caught. Norman shoves the policemen into a closet and when Helen asks what the noise in the closet is Norman says it is their cat. He further explains the cat was bad and he put her in the closet to train her to behave. Just then their teenaged daughter Cindy (Fay Masterson) walks down the stairs holding the cat.

Cops and Robbersons - Helen Dianne Wiest and Cindy Faye Masterson carrying tabby cat Caruso on stairs

Norman walks over and picks the cat up by the scruff and carries her to the closet, saying now she’s a very bad cat. He then tosses her into the closet where she starts to screech and scream. The cat he throws in the closet is obviously fake.

Cops and Robbersons - Helen Dianne Wiest and Cindy Faye Masterson carrying tabby cat Caruso on stairs with Norman Chevy Chase approaching

Cops and Robbersons - Norman Chevy Chase throwing fake tabby cat Caruso into closet

Kitty Carnage Warning!  After Helen and Cindy go back upstairs, Norman opens the door of the closet to find Caruso has attached herself to Jake’s leg. Jake stuggles to pull her off. This is done with a combination of real and fake cat, filmed to look more violent than it really is.

Cops and Robbersons - fake tabby cat Caruso on leg

Cops and Robbersons - real tabby cat Caruso on leg

Pulling the (fake) cat free, Jake throws her aside. Caruso is seen running away. Jake then accosts Norman and warns him, “Don’t ever throw a cat on me again!”

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso running away

Cops and Robbersons - Jake Jack Palance pulling tabby cat Caruso off leg and throwing her aside animated gif

Caruso is later seen with the Robberson’s oldest son Kevin (Jason James Richter) who sneaks beside the neighbor’s house to roll himself a cigarette from Jake’s tobacco. Caruso appears and walks around him.

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso with Kevin Jason James Richter

Kevin then sees the neighbor, a dangerous counterfeiter named Osborn (Robert Davi) shooting a watermelon with a gun. Osborn hears a noise at the window but when he looks up he just sees Caruso.

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso outside window

Throughout the film Caruso is seen in the background of several scenes.

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso in background behind Jake Jack Palance

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso on counter behind Norman Chevy Chase with Jake Jack Palance

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso on grass behind Jake Jack Palance

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso at door with Jake Jack Palance

Cops and Robbersons - tabby cat Caruso at door with Jake Jack Palance

But the cat isn’t featured again until the final seconds when the family and the police gather together for a photo, which includes Jake holding up Caruso.

Cops and Robbersons - photograph with police and Robbersons with Jake Jack Palance holding tabby cat Caruso

Final Mewsings: Throwing an angry cat at a policeman is assault with a deadly weapon!

Many thanks to Nick Wale for letting us know about the cat in this movie!


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