The Last Picture Show) Bogdanovich s first film in eight years. Assembled on that fateful voyage were Hearst, his mistress Marion Davies, Hollywood s own little tramp (in more ways than one) Charlie Chaplin, and assorted film people, gossip columnists and Hearst minions – a recipe for raucous times, and in this case, an unexplained disappearance. Adapted by Steven Peros from his stage play,
The Cat s Meow embraces rather than betrays its origins. While it may be slow, it is lifted by the playwright s attention to atmosphere, the script and the obligatory charleston.
Supplied Evoking scenes and ideas from Shakespeare s
Othello, Peros and Bogdanovich manage to skilfully mix the building tension with the frivolity of 1920s Hollywood (including the worst table-tennis match ever committed to celluloid).