L'uccello dalle piume di cristallo (1970)

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage poster

English Title: The Bird with the Crystal Plumage
Central Cinema Company Film (CCC)
Starring: Tony Musante, Mario Adorf
Directed by: Dario Argento

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

Synopsis: Sam Dalmas (Tony Musante) witnesses the attack on a woman in an art gallery and becomes obsessed with trying to find the man behind the crime.

Kitty Cameo: In an early scene Sam is walking through a collection of stuffed birds while talking to a friend. A long-haired ginger tabby is seen sitting among some of the birds in two quick shots.

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage - long haired ginger tabby cat sitting among stuffed birds

Cat Cattle Call (with implied Kitty Carnage Warning!): One of the clues in the case is a strange painting showing a man killing a woman in a park. Sam tracks down the reclusive artist who is living in a barn with the entire lower half sealed off. The artist, Berto Consalvi (Mario Adorf) offers Sam some meat to eat as they talk about the painting. Berto goes to retrieve the original when something slips past him. He calls to Sam to seal off the window as he chases the escapee around. Finally Berto catches the fugitive and it turns out to be a tuxedo cat.

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage - Berto Consalvi Mario Adorf catching tuxedo cat

Berto takes the cat back to a row of cages where several other cats are being held. He complains about how they manage to slip out of any hole. When Sam asks why he keeps the cats penned up Berto explains it helps them to get fat. Sam is slow on picking up on the fact that Berto eats the cats and that he has, in fact, been eating cat meat himself.

The Bird with the Crystal Plumage - Berto Consalvi Mario Adorf carrying tuxedo cat