Disney+ Thriller Exposes The Danger Of Dating

Cat Person centers on a college sophomore who begins dating a regular customer of the movie theater she works at. From the very beginning, she starts to imagine (while being egged on by her pessimistic roommate) that her new beau is going to attack her, and this psychological thriller will keep you on the edge as you try to figure out whether she’s right on the money or if her intrusive thoughts (manifested as another self she constantly speaks to) are making her simply imagine the worst.

If the plot of Cat Person sounds familiar, then you’re likely a subscriber to The New Yorker. This is a cinematic adaptation of a short story of the same name that Kristen Roupenian wrote for that publication, and this is the rare example of a film that enhances its literary source material in almost every way. The final film retains the sadly relatable ick factor of the original story while expanding on that narrative with an immensely talented cast.

In addition to its engaging and wonderfully unpredictable plot, Cat Person has a killer cast that brings this strange tale to life. Emilia Jones plays the young sophomore in question, and she brings the same level of intensity to this performance as she did to her role in the Academy Award-winning film Coda. Nicholas Braun plays her beau/bad guy, and his creepy captivating performance is a worthy successor to his role in the Primetime Emmy-award-winning series Succession.

I was pleasantly surprised at how well director Susanna Fogel handled Cat Person. She’s always been a great filmmaker, but she previously used her directing talents to handle comedies like The Spy Who Dumped Me and Life Partners. She was also co-writer of the whip-smart teen coming-of-age comedy Booksmart, so we were understandably shocked that she is just as adept at making us gasp in horror as she is at making us laugh in delight.

Unfortunately for Fogel and the rest of the creators of Cat Person, it seems that most of the critics of this film are dog people. On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie currently has a critical rating of 47 percent, with critics claiming that the plot is a bit too “drawn-out” and that the movie doesn’t ultimately (ahem) “land on its feet.” However, even the film’s harshest critics had to admit the movie added some welcome innovation to a genre that often feels played out, and that’s good news for psychological thriller fans looking for an entry into this genre that finally breaks the mold.

Fortunately, you don’t have to take the critics’ word about Cat Person, and you don’t even have to take ours (though like a malicious cat, we might get offended enough to start knocking your things off the shelf). As long as you also have a Hulu subscription, you can currently check this felicitous fancy feast out for yourself on Disney+. After that, you can let us know whether this movie was the cat’s meow or left you feeling like you had to cough up a popcorn-laced furball.