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July 19, 2015

Movie Review: Cat in the Brain (Grindhouse Releasing)

As a huge fan of Italian genre films, I hold Lucio Fulci’s work at the highest peak of a splatter covered mountain. Grindhouse Releasing began releasing several gore favorites from abroad that include Umberto Lenzi’s Cannibal Ferox (aka Make Them Die Slowly), Ruggero Deodato’s vile outing Cannibal Holocaust of course one of Fulci’s best The Beyond. Cat in the Brain is one of Fulci’s later films and it's slightly flawed but there is no doubt that this two-disc release is one hell of a lot of sick fun.

Lucio Fulci infuses himself into the project as the focal point of the storyline of Cat in The Brain where he plays Dr. Lucio Fulci, the Italian cult film extraordinaire. The scenes that he produces on a daily basis in his films are starting to take over his mind, much like... well... a cat in the brain.



Cat in a Brain is almost best described as a gory highlight reel of some of Fulci’s lesser films. Still it’s a hoot. The only film that probably resonates in the casual Fulci viewer are the clips from Touch of Death. If I were to put Cat in the Brain against any other Fulci film on a pure grue level it’s no doubt the bloodiest. The New York Ripper is still the sickest but this one does not disappoint if you like the red stuff.

Grindhouse has packed this release with a ton of extras that will surely make Fulci freaks happy. You get Lucio’s rarely seen Fangoria Weekend of Horrors appearance in 1996, bonus trailers, excellent liners by Antonella Fulci, David Schow and Eli Roth and interviews with Fulci and his star Brett Halsey. The interview with Fulci takes that cake as the best extra on the disc. The man is incredibly candid and full of stories. His disdain for American horror is especially amusing and it's something he seems to go on and on about.


Overall, Cat in the Brain is great fun. If you haven't  yet grabbed this fine Grindhouse Releasing release, get on it! Recommended.

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