A Talking Cat!?! is directed by David DeCoteau, even if the credits say it was directed by the pseudonym of Mary (or Marv, the font for the credits is terrible) Crawford.
As stated on David DeCoteau’s IMDB biography, his mentor is famed B movie director Roger Corman. If you needed an adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s work filmed in 24 hours, Corman was your man. Corman has also produced films such as Carnosaur, one of the first straight-to-video movie ripoffs (hitting video store shelves before Jurassic Park) that I can remember.
Before we get into David DeCoteau’s credits, let’s look at an excerpt from his mini-biography, which reads like a press release from David DeCoteau.
“His passion lies in the creation of popular genre programming made for world consumption. DeCoteau’s experience in creating content in countries all over the world makes him a proven choice for exceptionally challenging movie projects.”
Of course, most biographies read like someone looking for their next job. I remember this excerpt from Cary Grant’s biography.
“And if you ever need a charming man to be charming and handsome on a moving picture thing, Cary Grant can be reached at…”
I originally became aware of A Talking Cat!?! when David DeCoteau’s Hansel & Gretel: Warriors of Witchcraft appeared on Netflix. This was a straight-to-video movie ripoff of the mainstream Hansel & Gretel movie starring Jeremy Renner. Here is an excerpt from Jeremy Renner’s Biography.
“And if you ever need a handsome man to be handsome and tough on a moving picture thing, Jeremy Renner can be reached at…”
David DeCoteau’s big break was the straight-to-video (are you sensing a pattern here) Puppet Master III: Toulon’s Revenge. Like Corman, David has also directed many terrible adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe stories.
Most recently, David DeCoteau has fallen into a pattern of three types of movies. The straight-to-video ripoff genre, as represented by Hansel & Gretel. “Family” films, like Christmas Spirit and A Halloween Puppy. And finally, the 1313 sub-genre of LGBT horror B-movie, with titles like 1313: Frankenqueen and 1313: Hercules Unbound!
Of note, the family films and the softcore 1313 films are all filmed in the same house used in A Talking Cat!?! If you see a surface in any of those films, there has probably been an animal and a bare ass on it.
Now, armed with some basic knowledge of David DeCoteau and his work, we’ll explore the inky depths of the pit (and the pendulum) that is A Talking Cat!?!
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