Episode 21: Cat People (1942) & The Company of Wolves (1984)

Welcome to episode 21 of The Horror Double Bill, the podcast where each week we pair two films to create something far greater than the sum of their parts.

This week – after a very short break - we are back with the shapeshifters with two films that use metamorphosis as metaphor for sexuality, albeit with very different interpretations.

First up we have Cat People from 1943 and legendary producer Val Lewon. Directed by Jacques Tourneur it stars Simone Simon, Tom Cowway, Kent Smith and Jane Randolph. Then we follow this with The Company of Wolves from 1984, directed by Neil Jordan and staring Angela Lansbury, Sarah Patterson, David Warner and – in a blink and you’ll miss it cameo, the late great Terrence Stamp.

Along the way, we will be discussing the history of RKO Studios, director Jacques Tourneur, actor Simone Simon, author Angela Carter and much much more.

Sources

RKO Pictures:

https://www.britannica.com/art/history-of-film/Post-World-War-I-American-cinema

https://www.britannica.com/money/RKO-Radio-Pictures-Inc

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_Booking_Offices_of_America

https://oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark%3A%2F13030%2Fkt267nd72c

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RKO_Pictures

Cat People

https://youtu.be/rYLQTFUN7yI?si=LEACT0CJNyBvtoaD

Cat People by Kim Newman (BFI classics)

Val Lewton the reality of terror by Joel E Siegel

Jacques Tourneur The Cinema of Nightfall by Chris Fujiwara

The Company of Wolves

The Company of Wolves by James Gracie (Devils Advocates)

https://youtu.be/7GMb_VPoLr4?si=K52Do2OwxvB48Ndm

https://youtu.be/uzro7hXvp4c?si=TCk44HyEB2rBlPQr

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artwork by Justin Parker (IG jpkr_illustration.com)