{"id":3395,"date":"2007-06-28T17:33:24","date_gmt":"2007-06-29T00:33:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3395"},"modified":"2021-02-01T11:03:08","modified_gmt":"2021-02-01T18:03:08","slug":"leopard-man-the-1943","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3395","title":{"rendered":"Leopard Man, The (1943)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;Cats are funny, mister &#8212; they don&#8217;t want to hurt you, but if you scare them, they go crazy!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Poster1.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Poster1-198x300.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"198\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-30604\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Poster1-198x300.jpg 198w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Poster1-84x128.jpg 84w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Poster1.jpg 499w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 198px) 100vw, 198px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nWhen a traveling showman (Dennis O&#8217;Keefe) and his star performer (Jean Brooks) accidentally let a leopard loose in a New Mexico town, innocent young women begin to die, one after the other. Soon O&#8217;Keefe starts to believe that a man &#8212; not a leopard &#8212; is responsible for the killings, and reluctantly tries his best to catch the murderer.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Amateur Sleuths<\/li>\n<li>Jacques Tourneur Films<\/li>\n<li>Murder Mystery<\/li>\n<li>Psychological Horror<\/li>\n<li>Serial Killers<\/li>\n<li>Val Lewton Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Response to Peary&#8217;s Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nMore a &#8220;mystery with horror elements&#8221; than a straight horror flick, Peary designates <em>The Leopard Man <\/em> the &#8220;creepiest film&#8221; ever made by producer Val Lewton and director Jacques Tourneur. Two sequences in particular are, as Peary notes, &#8220;among the scariest in film history&#8221;: when &#8220;a young girl [Margaret Landry] is chased home by the leopard through the dark, deserted streets and winds up outside her locked door, unable to get inside&#8221; (note the slow trickle of blood along the lintel of the closed doorway), and when &#8220;another young girl [Tula Parnen] is trapped inside a cemetery after dark, and something on the tree limb above her is ready to pounce&#8221;. Unfortunately, as Peary points out, &#8220;some of the dialogue is a bit clunky, and the finale&#8230; seems hurried&#8221; (not to mention far-fetched); but the story remains both tense and suspenseful, with plenty of grist for critical analysis (see the two Bright Lights Film Journal articles below). <\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Robert De Grasse&#8217;s atmospheric cinematography<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography-1024x652.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"408\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-47056\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography-1024x652.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography-300x191.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography-128x82.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography-768x489.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Cinematography.png 1493w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Many genuinely frightening scenes<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2-1024x635.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"397\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-47057\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2-1024x635.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2-300x186.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2-128x79.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2-768x476.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Scary2.png 1531w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Clo-Clo (Margo) clicking her castanets as she walks down the street<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-1024x634.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"396\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-47055\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-1024x634.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-300x186.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-128x79.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-768x476.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2-1536x952.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/06\/Leopard-Man-Clo-Clo2.png 1551w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes. This collaboration between Val Lewton and Jacques Tourneur remains, according to Peary, &#8220;essential Lewton&#8221;. <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Important Director<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0036104\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<li>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/www.dvdtalk.com\/dvdsavant\/s1765val.html\">DVD Savant Review (scroll down)<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.tcm.com\/tcmdb\/title\/268\/the-leopard-man#articles-reviews?articleId=448\">TCM Article<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.timeout.com\/film\/80311.html\">Time Out Capsule Review<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;Cats are funny, mister &#8212; they don&#8217;t want to hurt you, but if you scare them, they go crazy!&#8221; Synopsis: When a traveling showman (Dennis O&#8217;Keefe) and his star performer (Jean Brooks) accidentally let a leopard loose in a New Mexico town, innocent young women begin to die, one after the other. Soon O&#8217;Keefe starts to believe that a man &#8212; not a leopard &#8212; is responsible for the killings, and reluctantly tries his best to catch the murderer. Genres,&#8230;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=3395\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-responses-to-peary"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3395"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3395\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67694,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3395\/revisions\/67694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}