French Exit (2020)

Directed by: Azazel Jacobs

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

Synopsis: Based on Patrick DeWitt’s novel. Frances Price (Michelle Pfeiffer), an eccentric New York socialite, and her dependent son Malcolm (Lucas Hedges) move to Paris with the last of their limited funds.

Featured Feline: A black cat named Small Frank lives with Frances and Malcolm in their large New York home.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank walking toward stairs

French Exit - black cat Small Frank at top of stairs

French Exit - black cat Small Frank running up stairs animated gif

It is implied there is something special about Small Frank which we don’t learn until later in the film.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank in empty house

When the mother and son move to Paris, they take Small Frank with them.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank in car with Frances Michelle Pfeiffer and Malcolm Lucas Hedges

French Exit - black cat Small Frank in car with Frances Michelle Pfeiffer and Malcolm Lucas Hedges animated gif

On the ship to France, a waiter sees Small Frank sitting at a table with Frances. He asks if the cat is with them. When they don’t answer, the waiter picks up Small Frank and carries him away. Frances goes after him.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank at table on ship with Frances Michelle Pfeiffer and Malcolm Lucas Hedges

At the bar Malcolm talks to the ship’s fortune teller, Madeleine (Danielle Macdonald). When Frances returns with Small Frank, Madeleine eyes him intensly. “Do you know?” she asks them. “We know,” Frances assures her.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank looking at Madeleine Danielle Macdonald

French Exit - black cat Small Frank held by Frances Michelle Pfeiffer

Not sure how else to smuggle Small Frank into France, Frances slips some pills into his food. She actually partakes herself and wakes up just in time to disembark, placing the cat into her bag.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank eating food with Frances Michelle Pfeiffer in background

French Exit - black cat Small Frank being placed in bag

Once at their friend’s home in Paris, she lets Small Frank out of the bag.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank let out of bag by Frances Michelle Pfeiffer and Malcolm Lucas Hedges

Small Frank is present throughout the film. One highlight is a very brief scene in which he knocks over a tiny Christmas tree.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank on bed looking at Frances Michelle Pfeiffer

French Exit - black cat Small Frank on back of couch

French Exit - black cat Small Frank about to knock over small Christmas tree

French Exit - black cat Small Frank knocking over Christmas tree animated gif

Malcolm comes home one day to find Frances actually trying to throttle Small Frank. The cat scratches her and runs out the door.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank fighting back against Frances

When Small Frank doesn’t return, they search for Madeleine since they know she had a connection to the cat. When they find her, Frances finally explains that when her husband Frank died, she found his body with the black cat on top of him, licking his lips. At that point she knew the cat was the reincarnation of Frank.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank licking the lips of dead husband Frank

French Exit - black cat Small Frank sitting on dead husband Frank

Madeleine reaches out to Frank through Small Frank, who is sitting beneath a bench in a park. From then on they communicate with Frank via candle and the cat’s part is diminished.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank under bench in park

French Exit - black cat Small Frank under bench in park with eyes glowing

French Exit - black cat Small Frank under bench in park with eyes glowing animated gif

There is one final shot of Small Frank following Frances at the end of the film.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank following Frances Michelle Pfeiffer down dark street at night

The animal wrangler on the film was Josée Juteau with Nathalie Labelle assisting.

French Exit - black cat Small Frank on desk

In a video posted by Reuters, Michelle Pfeiffer talks about approaching a script with a “talking cat” (the cat itself doesn’t actually talk in the film). Director Azazel Jacobs explains that two cats played the part but the cat actors were not credited on screen.