You are what noir: Cat City (2010) Review

Although I have respected the genre since my college days, film noir has never been a topic of conversation on this site. That has changed since I received a screener for Cat City, a film made in 2008, but is being released for the first time tomorrow. This crime-drama stars some recognizable past headliner names such as Julian Sands and Brian Dennehy, but also has a share of some fresher faces in the industry.

Cat City resuscitates film noir in this modern age tale set during the aftermath of a failed casino developmental deal in the Cathedral or "Cat" City area of Palm Springs. Real estate developer Nick Compton (Sands) confides in a young stranger named Jonas (Alano Massi), who comes to town off a recommendation from Nick's friend, to help get some needed funds close the deal. However, Jonas is more than meets the eye and his hidden agenda could prove deadly.



In the meantime, Nick's wife Victoria (Rebecca Pidegeon) hires a P.I. (Dennehy) who learns that Nick is having an affair with Allyson (Shawn Huff), one of her colleagues at her law firm. When all of these characters start mixing in and out of each others' lives, let the mystery and drama begin!

This Cat is stuffed to the whiskers with twists, turns, betrayals, indiscretions, set-ups, schemes, ans murder. All of these ingredients are typical to the genre and helps complicate the plot as it builds towards an exciting conclusion with a classic plot twist.



Director Brent Huff really pulls the most out of his actors, whether they are a seasoned veteran who can motivate themselves like Sands or an inexperienced actor on the rise in a key role like Massi. The output delivered by a director, with only a few smaller scale films on his resume before taking on the Cat, is extremely impressive.



In fact, the acting and the beautiful Palm Springs scenery are what save this film from being below average fare. Some suspenseful moments are sometimes too brief to be truly suspenseful and the end twist is a great one, but it was predictable, at least to this reviewer. Even though it is a fun film to enjoy, you have probably seen the same plot devices before in several other movies. That aside, it's still worth a watch if you have a chance to do so.

Cat City is available for purchase beginning tomorrow, Tuesday, September 28th on DVD. The film is exactly what it means to be: a straight up old school film noir taking place in our present-day. Recommended for all fans of the genre or those looking for a thriller with a decent crime story and some surprisingly good acting.


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