‘Strays’ is Made-For-TV Horror For Cat Lovers
Drew Tinnin
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If I told you there was an R-rated movie called Strays about an abandoned puppy who teams up with a pack of mangy street dogs to take revenge on his evil owner, that would sound like it belongs in the horror genre, right? Wrong. That version of Strays is a raunchy comedy starring Will Ferrell and Jamie Foxx that’s currently in theaters now.
The original Strays was a made-for-tv thriller about a clowder of feral cats who aren’t exactly willing to give up their country home when a new family looking to get away from city life comes knocking. Premiering just in time for Christmas in 1991 on the USA Network, Strays seems fairly ridiculous now in retrospect. But it legitimately scarred a large swath of kids when it debuted, causing nightmares and even more suspicion pointed at perfectly innocent cat ladies across the countryside.
Kicking off with a cat’s eye POV Steadicam shot, a lonesome elderly woman (Eve Brunner) takes comfort in seeing all of her furry friends relaxing by the fireplace. “My babies,” she says lovingly. As she ventures down into the storm cellar looking for a few more cans of tuna, the number of cats starts to multiply at an alarming rate. Surrounded, she’s suddenly attacked and thrown down the cellar stairs to her death. Cue the opening credits!
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Unbeknownst to Paul (Timothy Busfield) and Lindsey Jarrett (Kathleen Quinlan) and their daughter Tessa (Jessica Lilley), the cats haven’t gone anywhere when move-in day finally arrives. Thinking they have a rat problem, Lindsey discovers two adorable kittens nestled in the attic. She adopts them, not realizing that the deadlier breeds are still lurking down in the cellar. That discovery is left to an unlucky telephone repairman (Gary McGurk) who is subsequently suffocated and killed by a frightening amount of furious felines.
Can the family survive long enough to get out of the house alive? Of course they can. But not before Paul’s entire wardrobe is soaked in cat pee and Tessa’s crib is viciously attacked by a bunch of milk-crazed kitties. Led by an ornery British Shorthair starring as the ultimate killer cat, it’s up to Paul to be the man of the house and take out the threat before it’s too late.
The main cat featured in Strays was named Monty, and also appeared as Church in Pet Sematary just a couple of years earlier. Surprisingly, the performance Monty delivers is even more unsettling than his Stephen King debut. On the flip side, the competition-ready Chinchilla Persian highlighted in the film was the breakout star from the Fancy Feast commercials.
Timothy Busfield and Kathleen Quinlan were considered marquee names during the time. They manage to sell writer Shaun Cassidy’s stilted dialogue relatively easily. They also look genuinely scared during a few close encounters, especially during the finale of Strays which takes place in the middle of a massive thunderstorm.
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But it’s the cats that are the real stars here, and the actors both seem perfectly fine sharing the spotlight. Coincidentally, Quinlan had just been featured as the witchy journalist Patricia Kennealy in Oliver Stones’ The Doors prior to her co-starring role in Strays. It’s also worth noting that actors Claudia Christian and William Boyett are featured after both performers were possessed by the same space slug in Jack Sholder’s The Hidden.
For such an admittedly silly premise, Strays manages to deliver a real sense of atmosphere and some shockingly well-choreographed action. It’s the loud, constant high-pitch screeches of Monty and his cohorts that deliver the most goosebump-inducing moments, however.
For the record, no cats were harmed during the making of Strays. Acting as a representative for the American Humane Association, Barbara Sands was regularly on set. The trained acro-cats featured were mostly prompted by clickers, treats, and various toys to jump into action. The production may have actually been more fun for the cats than the actual people involved during production. There were also fake, mechanical cats created by Jim and Debra Boulden that were used anytime a physical altercation was called for in the script. Some of the obvious moments where a stuffed cat is thrown at the camera make the film enjoyable on an entirely different level.
What could have been a second-rate made-for-TV movie has definitely made an impression over the years. Strays gets a lot out of its generic PG rating and makes ailurophobia (or the fear of cats) seem a lot less irrational. If you’re a cat lover and a horror fan, there’s really no excuse not to check this out one rainy night. Just make sure your pets are in the other room.
Strays is available on Blu-ray over at Scream Factory!
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