Oscar Dancigers Production
Starring: Dan O’Herlihy, Jaime Fernández
Directed by: Luis Buñuel
Cat Out of the Bag Alert! This review contains some spoilers for this film!
Synopsis: Based on the novel by Daniel Defoe, this movie follows the trials and tribulations of a British man named Robinson Crusoe (Dan O’Herlihy) shipwrecked on a deserted island for many years, first in solitude and then with a newfound friend, a native he rescues and names Friday (Jaime Fernández).
Featured Feline: Robinson Crusoe manages to return to his ship to look for supplies and comes across a drenched cat below deck. He rescues the cat, bringing it to the island with him. The cat’s name is Sam and becomes one of Crusoe’s companions (along with a dog named Rex and several parrots.)
When Crusoe brings Sam to the island the poor cat is panting, either from thirst or from nervousness.
Sam is seen in several scenes afterwards, usually with Crusoe and Rex the dog, although once in a while Sam would have a close up.
Both Rex and Sam are helpless to lend a paw when Crusoe comes down terribly ill.
The dog and cat get along well for the most part, but when Crusoe recovers he looks for some tobacco to use to prevent future illness. He lifts Sam off of a chest and looks for the tobacco. When Rex approaches, Sam hisses and strikes at him!
Cat Burglars (Scene Stealers): The last we see of Sam is when Crusoe discovers that he, or rather she, has had a litter of kittens. Seeing it has been about a year since they were shipwrecked, Crusoe wonders where Sam found the father and Rex is equally puzzled. Crusoe claims it is the one mystery he never solved.
The unexplained birth has left some film fans to speculate that Buñuel was trying to imply some subtext into the film, but in the novel apparently two cats survived and so the birth of kittens was not such a mystery.
Final Mewsings: The real mystery is how Crusoe never knew that Sam was a female!
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