User reviews

I don't know if it was me, because my friends had the same problem, but I had the hardest time figuring out who was who in this movie. I could determine who Dorgo, the monk guy was, and I kinda knew who the helicopter guy was, but all the women... they all just ran together into one big woman. I had the hardest of time distinguishing between all the women that helicopter guy was with through the course of the movie, because I really think they were all the same actress. The married woman with a kid who looked like Cher, the woman on the roof who made hand signals at the guy in the helicopter, the woman Dorgo killed. Arggh!! Who were half of these people?!

I thought this was a pretty messed up movie. The only part that actually had any coherence, was the last scene, where the head of the helicopter guy was imaged in the last glass box, beside all the other heads in the glass box. Though the cats couldn't put his head into the box, the camera could angle his head into the box. Other than that... C.R.A.P.

I don't want to talk any more about this movie, I just want my money back.

**Final Judgement* Dorgo is my new hero** Good day

This movie should be called Night of 1000 Hours of Helicopter Scenes. If you want to see some sick guy spend twenty minutes flying a helicopter, then somehow seducing a woman by buzzing around her house and stalking her, then maybe you would like this walking disease. Also, instead of 1000 cats, more like 70, and during the climatic end scenes, only 10 cats, with the same scene shown over again until you want to puke. Only good for making fun of. The one redeeming thing about this film was the video I saw it on was made out of yellow plastic, I had never seen that before. In conclusion, I would rather have toxoplasmosa than see this again. Thank you.

Sophisticated, international playboy, Hugo (Hugo Stiglitz) loves women. He flies around in his helicopter, wearing enormous sunglasses, while various females smile like they've got coat hangers stuck in their mouths.

Hugo hovers. He zooms.

He takes women back to his fortress-like bachelor villa / monastery, where his faithful servant, Dorgo (Gerardo Zepeda) awaits, looking as though he spends his days inhaling oven cleaner.

Inside, Hugo shows off by tossing cats like beanbags, into their enclosure. Soon, it's time for Hugo to unveil his collection of severed heads. He's a man of many talents. Murdering his girlfriends for their noggins is one of them. This allows him to feed their bodies to his cat swarm. Hugo doesn't believe in being wasteful.

It's not long before he's airborne again, hovering over women and their swimming pools. They can't ignore his subtlety, since he floats three feet above them!

They want to go with him. They must go with him!

Yes, he rides a motorcycle too. It allows him to hover closer. Hugo is persistent, and always gets his female lover / head donation / cat food. Hugo is a haunted man. He only loved one woman. Her head is his favorite. All of his "girlfriends" have one thing in common: Their heads are more productive in their plastic boxes than they were on their shoulders!

THE NIGHT OF A THOUSAND CATS must be witnessed by every living being!

Hugo waxes philosophical! He plays chess while smoking his pipe! He hovers over more swimming pools than an Olympic diver! He is irresistible to women! The pointlessness of this movie is beyond measure. Is it a metaphor for life itself? Only Hugo knows for sure.

P.S.- I want a villa / monastery! I want a Dorgo! I want a thousand cats! Where's my helicopter? Let's fly!...

There are some scenes where real cats are used cruelly -- He dunked a real cat under water in a swimming pool -held it down, throwing a real cat... if they had of used fake cats then I would not have minded - we get the idea that the guy is cat crazy and cruel at the same time without hurting real cats. I do NOT believe in hurting real animals over a freaking film.

Yea I would have liked this one a little better without the cruelty... and so many helicopter scenes (that's how he does it, flies around in his chopper to find women to woo, kill and feed his cats plus himself).

Once with this film is enough for me... I barely made it to the ending with him being cruel to real cats.

1/10

This movie has actual animal cruelty. A man hurts a cat by seriously grabbing it, then throwing it across the room. I have 10 cats, & run a small rescue. I know this is not simulated. I can tell by the animal's reaction, and the way the cat corrects as its thrown. If you're watching this because you love cats, DON'T WATCH THIS MOVIE!

Apart from not delivering on the promise of 1000 cats, this movie also neglects to give us plot, pacing, or continuity. A good third of the movie is helicopter flights, another third is the same clips of about 30 cats played over and over again. The remaining third is the actual movie, but the plot still manages to drag somehow. The only thing that made watching this movie somewhat tolerable was that the copy I watched had the audiotracks edited to evade copyright detection. So the villian sounded like Xerxes from 300. I recommend watching cat people (1942) instead.

In case you're a fan of "The Simpsons" (and who honestly isn't?), you probably are familiar with the hilarious supportive character of Crazy Cat-Lady. This totally dysfunctional and rather uncanny woman surrounds herself with an army of cats and even uses them as artillery to throw at people. Well, the main character of this film – Hugo – is sort of like the richer, more civilized, male and cinematic equivalent of Crazy Cat-Lady! For completely unexplained reasons, Hugo keeps A LOT (but surely not a thousand) of cats in the basement of the family castle, and that's definitely not the only curious aspect of his life-style. Hugo has everything in life others could only dream of. He's filthy rich, supposedly good looking (although I personally think he looks too much like Daniel Stern), he has a giant castle with a hunchbacked servant, a fancy helicopter and oceans of time to spot & stalk ravishing women. And yet, despite all his wealth, Hugo is a sick man who collects people's heads in pickled jars and feeds the leftovers to his collection of loudly meowing cats. He seduces women by endlessly circling his helicopter over their houses, finally manages to take them home and then kills them after only one night of hot passionate sex. He repeats this strange ritual no less than four times throughout the film (at least, in the fully uncut version) before the ravenous pets break out of their lair and aggressively turn against their master. "Night of a 1.000 Cats" is an utterly dumb and pointless movie. I know not to expect too much from the Mexican exploitation efforts directed by René Cardona Jr., but this has got to be one of the most incoherent and plot-less films I ever endured. There isn't a single bit of elementary logic or depth in the script and the absence of continuity is almost infuriating! Why the hell is Hugo so upset with the world even though he's probably the luckiest man on the planet? Why start a collection of decapitated human heads if your ancestors always collected stamps? Why doesn't he ever get caught even though his modus operandi of picking up girls in a helicopter isn't exactly subtle or inconspicuous? Why on earth would someone keep an army of cats in his basement even though he clearly doesn't show any affection for animals? There sure are easier ways to get rid of cadavers. At least you'd expect a nonsensical and trashy film like this to be entertaining and over-the-top gory, but it really isn't. Most of the footage in the full version is intolerably tedious and unnecessary, like Hugo flying around in his helicopter and standing guard at the gates of women's houses. I noticed there's a 63 minutes version available, so in case you do want to see this film for some incomprehensible reason, make sure you purchase the short version. The full version certainly doesn't contain any more graphic violence, sleazy sex sequences or corpse-eating cat action, I guarantee you. The photography, editing and sound effects are all incredibly tacky and amateurish. Hugo Stiglitz is a lousy actor without the slightest bit of charisma, but still René Cardona seemed to enjoy working with him, as Stiglitz also appears in the terribly inane Jaws-rip off "Tintorera", "Treasure of the Amazon" and "The Bermuda Triangle". This turkey is one to avoid at all costs, unless you want mew harder than a serenade of a thousand cats.

The inimitable Hugo Stiglitz and his trademark cheekless beard prowls the sunny skies of tropical Acapulco in his private chopper, stalking impressionable damsels to date, strangle and subsequently feed to his thousand-head cattery.

Hugo always looks most comfortable intertwined with the body of some lusty European/American (imported) actress on the other side of her hey day, and his frequent collaborator Rene Cardona Jnr delivers a smorgasbord of tail for him to plunder in this somewhat Gothic-psycho- sex pic.

As an aimless, expressionless (another Stiglitz signature) independently wealthy playboy, he randomly courts four or five women of various nationalities (it's difficult to keep count), but his piece de resistance (almost literally) is the yummy-mummy Anjanette Comer, whom he hovers above whilst her well-to-do husband (Russek) is off earning the dough. Temptation soon becomes too much for her to bear, and so another opportunity emerges for Stiglitz to add to his pickle-jar collection.

Fantastically absurd with a plethora of bare butts and tan lines, copious amounts of cognac, a pantry full of severed heads and the incessant meowing of a thousand hungry felines to clear up the scraps. Simple and mildly effective lusty Latin horror.

A playboy aristocrat tries to romance several women around the town, yet when his advances are spurned, brings them back to his castle to feed to his basement filled with flesh-eating cats.

Superb Mexican exploitation effort, filled with lots of nudity, some what-should-be arrogant speeches from the main guy about getting away with it all and just the general nature of the storyline, about the tactics he uses and the toys he plays with in order to do everything he does around the city, so despite the lack of real action since it's pretty slow-going, it's still a good bit of fun. The castle is again a grand Gothic masterpiece, filled with the cramped rooms, candle-lit walkways and brick architecture that's always featured in these films, and with the cats coming into play more in the second half, it adds an extra bit of spice into the proceedings what with them getting loose and chasing after the victims causing a suspenseful chase to get out. Needed a bit more action during the second half when he's trying to lure the women back, but it's not all that bad at all.

Rated R: Full Nudity, Graphic Violence, Language and violence-against-animals

The Night of a Thousand Cats (1972)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

Hugo (Hugo Stiglitz) is a millionaire playboy who flies around in his own helicopter looking for beautiful women. He puts the women into the helicopter with him and takes them to his house, which is also the home to hundreds (not thousands) of cats. He then brutally murders the women, puts their heads in his collection room and feeds the rest of them to his cats.

René Cardona Jr. is best remembered for some rather strange and crazy films but THE NIGHT OF A THOUSAND CATS has to be one of the weirdest. In fact, this movie is just so strange and bizarre that I'm somewhat shocked that it isn't better known by cult fans. I'm not sure if there's an alternate, longer version out there but the one making the rounds on various sites clocks in at just 62-minutes.

There's very little plot going on in this film and in fact there's very little that actually happens. Throughout the short running time we see Hugo flying around, spotting the beautiful woman, picking her up, showing her his home and then we see them killed and fed to the cats. None of the murders are overly graphic but the director loves showing the chopped up bodies that are being fed to the cats.

That there is pretty much the only thing that happens in the film. Over and over the exact same thing happens and while the film is somewhat poorly made it's just so crazy that you can't help but enjoy what's going on. I certainly haven't seen a movie like this before. On one hand you can bash that plot-less film but then again you have to respect a sleaze movie like this that just gives the viewer the same thing since the director obviously believes that's what they want.

THE NIGHT OF A THOUSAND CATS has a few scenes towards the cats that will offend those who love the animals so those people should be cautioned. With that said, the film is certainly a unique one and fans of cult films should enjoy it.

I must have missed something in this crap. Hate to say it but I watched the whole thing, hoping it would get better. It didn't, if anything it got dumber. Some nut case chasing you with shears and you don't scream until the end, and you never let go of the flowers you've been running around with. Then we come to the little girl, no servants, no nanny. Parents leave her alone at home, with a giant pool who the hell does this. Then the killer gives her a ride, didn't her parents tell her about strangers. Worst movie ever plus bad acting, if you can even call it that.

This film goes nowhere. There is no blood, no nudity, no weirdness... absolutely nothing that describes this as a 70s horror film. There is hardly any dialogue and great part of the film are just shots of a helicopter and bad seventys instrumental music. The few girls in the film are beautiful, but considering that it was a horror film and it was the 70s, there should have been more skin shown, at least to justify for the poor story line and bad acting.

This film is nowhere close to any other 70s horror gems. Another factor that disappointed me was that the movie is all spoken in English. Since the title is La Noche de los Mil Gatos, I thought it was going to be spoken in Spanish, so that took away my interest since the beginning.

I do not recommend to serious horror film buffs.

I recently watched the Mexican horror film 🇲🇽 Night of 1,000 Cats (1972) on Prime. The storyline revolves around a wealthy philanthropist who travels the countryside picking up women, wining and dining them, and then feeding them to his cats.

Directed by René Cardona Jr. (Under Siege), the film stars Anjanette Comer (The Baby), Hugo Stiglitz (Nightmare City), Zulma Zaiad (Guns and Guts), Christa Linder (Hot Snake), and Teresa Velázquez (The Rape of the Sabines).

Overall, Night of 1,000 Cats is a moderately average film with some redeeming qualities. The acting, dialogue, and storyline are passable, though not exceptional. The kills lack creativity and fail to leave a lasting impact, despite the potential of featuring numerous cats which wasn't as impactful as intended. However, the sets and dungeons are visually appealing and well-crafted, while the unique torture devices add an intriguing element to the film. Additionally, the cast includes attractive actresses, with ample nudity throughout.

In conclusion, Night of 1,000 Cats may only appeal to diehard fans of the horror genre. I would rate it a 4.5-5/10 and recommend it with appropriate expectations.

Imagine some dude shows up in your backyard with a helicopter, trying to seduce you. I like to think that even in the 70s that would have been considered uber-creepy, but perhaps that is the point: after all, when he tells you he wants you to always be near him, he means it more literally than you might have imagined.

Beside the bizarrely silly story, the movie features ridiculous death scenes, jarring edits, really fake-looking body props, and padded-out sequences of the guy flying around in his helicopter, which is absolutely amazing considering that the movie is barely over an hour long.

And yet...the movie does manage to rise above utter trash, even if it can by no means be considered a good movie.

For one thing, there are the unsettling slo-mo scenes of a large number of cats in a huge cage (it is not clear to me whether there was animal abuse involved, as much can be achieved by cinematic trickery, but I hope the cats were not harmed). Then there is the eerie monastery setting. Together with the lively music and Panavision cinematography, they help the movie attain a flair and entertainment value which by rights it should not have had.

I know too little about Mexican cinema to be sure, but I feel the movie can be read as a satirical commentary on the excesses of the wealthy elite, and if it was really intended as such, that would certainly be another redeeming point.

However ridiculous, the premise is immediately eye-catching, especially for a cat lover like myself, and that was all it took to draw me in. As the movie begins, we just as quickly take in the fetching filming location, fine attention to costume design, hair and makeup, and detailed if garish set decoration. Of course, these hardly distract from the content at hand that is certainly very grisly, and generally downright tawdry in its realization - I've seen this referred to as a "cat horror exploitation film," and that is as fitting a description as one will find. 'Night of 1000 cats' is certainly a curious experience, I'll say that much.

Long scenes of churlish playboy murderer "Hugo" (Hugo Stiglitz, wooden and less than impressive) flying his helicopter close over residential properties are taxing and absurd in their playfulness, to say nothing of the way he very conspicuously follows some marks. Why, judging from this feature alone, Stiglitz is readily outclassed by costar Gerardo Zepeda, cast in the underwritten, over the top supporting role of Dorgo, "Hugo's" servant.

Speaking of underwritten - even recognizing the coarse nature of the feature, the plot here is outrageously thin. So it is too for the screenplay as a whole - scenes, characters, dialogue. I can't say I'm impressed with the camerawork, the sound seems deficient, and inelegant transitions also reflect poorly on the editing. Meanwhile, it's hard to assess the performances of other members of the cast when they are given so little screen time, and so little to do, and are so heavily restricted by the picture's weak craft.

One would also be terribly remiss not to mention the animal cruelty in the movie. I would like to believe that the most egregious instances are just very carefully staged, but I simply don't know if that's true. And anyway, for the sheer number of cats we see, and under the circumstances in which we see them, it's hard not to be concerned for abuse and neglect. What became of all these beautiful felines after production wrapped? I'm afraid to ask.

On the one hand I'm put out that the full 93-minute cut is so difficult to find; if nothing else, I would hope that what seems like highly indelicate narrative writing is fleshed out with more and longer scenes. On the other hand, I'm wholly unsure that those extra 30 minutes, omitted from the American release, would be worth my while in the first place. I really do like the idea of the movie, and I'd love to see this given a proper, judicious remake. Unfortunately, the rendition that we have is less than satisfying. Even for the most ardent ailurophile or fan of schlocky, dubious 70s horror, I'm just not convinced that 'Night of 1000 cats' is actually worth the time it takes to watch. I love the concept, but the movie we have gotten out of it is specious at best.

Night of a 1000 Cats was not the masterpiece of Mexican exploitation I expected it to be, but is still a solid little gem of low budget filmmaking. Hey, René Cardona Jr. is directing it, and Hugo Stiglitz plays the lead, and thats all I needed anyway. As usual Hunky Hugo plays a rich playboy womanizer, but in this film he is a little more psycho than usual. He lures women to his old gothic mansion, makes sweet love and kills them. He feeds his hungry cats with their bodies, but preserves their heads and adds them to his "collection". No reason is given for Hugo's deviant behavior and his "minimal face expression" approach to acting certanly isn't helping us understand the character. We do get ordinary "I want you to stay with me forever. FOREVER" -clichés thrown in our faces, but they don't make much sense since Hugo seems to be a well-adjusted fellow with no social problems. The other problem I had with "1000 Cats" is the same one that another commentator pointed out: it's very hard to separate Hugo's women, since they all look pretty much alike and all share the same (minimal) personality. The film's constantly moves in and out of flashback, which only adds to the confusion. So, here we have an underwritten, underplayed (but hunky!) character killing what seems like the same woman over and over again. The characters in the film just doesn't work, (except for Hugo's mute butler Dorgo, the mad monk. Right on!). The film could have been slightly faster paced too.

So, what DOES work?

First of all, this is a René Cardona Jr.-flick and it is my firm belief that everyone of his films are worth watching, at least once. His films always have a certain "feel" to them, that I can't explain but enjoy very much. They all have that little extra something that seperates them from similiar (some say identical, but what do they know?) films. Although low budget productions, he always manages to squeeze the best out of his pesetas and present a good looking, well edited and charmy product that delivers the goods, whatever they might be. "1000 Cats" is no exception. In many aspects, it's not what it shows, but what it doesn't show that makes it work. Sure the characters are flat, and the story doesn't make sense, but at least it's everybody and everything is nice to look at, fairly fast paced, well crafted and directed. Just imagine how awful it COULD have been if none of those components would have been there.

Maybe I'm in a forgiving mode, but:

6/10