by Mark Murton

Directed by: Max Varnel

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

Synopsis: In this undemanding British B-movie farce buoyed by personable leads, struggling insurance salesman Tom Briggs (Anton Rodgers) “loans” his wife Jenny (Nyree Dawn Porter) to old army friend Drew (Kenneth J. Warren) who needs to make a good impression on his visiting Uncle Charles (Henry McCarty) who will only entrust the family business to him if he is respectably married.

Cat Burglar (Scene Stealer): Initially Drew requests that Jenny act as hostess at the reception he is throwing to mark his Uncle’s arrival, but during the evening it becomes clear that Uncle Charles is under the impression that Jenny is actually Drew’s wife. Tom demands an explanation and he, Jenny and Drew retire to Drew’s bedroom where Drew goes to sit on the bed beside his fluffy gray Persian cat.

Drew sits stroking the cat as he admits he has told his Uncle that Jenny is in fact his wife. Tom and Jenny are less than pleased but reluctantly agree to carry on the deception for the rest of the evening.

However, with the reception over and the rest of the guests gone, Uncle Charles announces that he intends to stay the night at Drew’s rather than return to his hotel. To continue the ruse, Jenny has to spend the night in Drew’s bedroom while Drew is consigned to the en suite bathroom to sleep in the bath. As Jenny and Drew enter the bedroom the cat emerges from the bathroom and trots across behind them and under the bed.

All is well until Jenny turns off the light to go to sleep and the cat jumps (or rather is catapulted) onto the bed and runs right across her, causing her to scream.

Jenny’s continued screams awaken everyone, and Tom (who also found an excuse to stay the night) pounds on the door fearing the worst. Jenny duly emerges looking dishevelled before handing the cat to Tom and instructing him to “Put the cat out.” The cat is indeed put out, right out of the film.

Final Mewsings: A wife might put up with being part-time but cats are strictly full time.

Relevant Links:

To discuss this film and other cats in movies and on television, join us on Facebook and X.