Cat's Cradle

Cat's Cradle (1959)

Images of two women, two men, and a gray cat form a montage of rapid bits of movement. A woman is in a bedroom, another wears an apron: they work with their hands, occasionally looking up. A man enters a room, a woman smiles. He sits, another man sits and smokes. The cat stretches. There are close-ups of each. The light is dim; a filter accentuates red. A bare foot stands on a satin sheet. A woman disrobes. She pets the cat. Preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2006.

Date of release
1959-01-01
TMDB
5.9 / 10 (40)
Runtime
6m
Genres
Documentary
Director
Stan Brakhage

Casting

Interesting facts

Cat's Cradle is an experimental short film by Stan Brakhage, produced in 1959. The film was described by Brakhage as "sexual witchcraft involving two couples and a 'medium' cat."

Production

Cat's Cradle was filmed in Princeton, New Jersey. The film features Stan Brakhage and his wife Jane, as well as composer James Tenney and visual artist Carolee Schneemann. Schneemann, who appeared in several Brakhage films, wore an apron at Brakhage's insistence.

The entirely silent film was described by Brakhage as "sexual witchcraft involving two couples and a 'medium' cat." The film features shots of the naked bodies that are, according to writer Walter Metz, "edited in such a way that very little narrative sense can be immediately gleaned from them.

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