Frightfest London 2025: ‘Don’t Let The Cat Out’ Review
Stars: Antony Del Negro, Edy Ganem, Cerina Vincent, Jordan James Smith, Brittany Cavaco, Ashton Leigh, Tom O’Connell, Sterling Sulieman | Written by Tim Cruz, Antony Del Negro | Directed by Tim Cruz
The horror genre (and Frightfest) always tends to produce the odd, truly weird movie, and Don’t Let The Cat Out falls nicely into that category. What seems like an easy $500 for house-sitting in a nice neighbourhood soon becomes something much more difficult when he discovers a note on the fridge.
The note details a list of things to do and not to do involving the cat of the house. The list is a little bit strange; he sees no cat, and of course, he is allergic to cats. Not only that, but the homeowners didn’t even mention a cat. Things start getting a bit strange. This opener creates the perfect ‘what the hell is happening’ thoughts into the audience, which perhaps the movie doesn’t quite fulfil.
Unsurprisingly, Don’t Let The Cat Out leans into the comedy side of things. That said, it doesn’t do this with one-liners or some kind of slapstick; the story itself just produces ridiculous scenarios, and the actors go with this. There is a bit of overacting, but if the audience goes along with the silliness – and a live paying audience is perfect for this – then there’s plenty of fun to be had.
There is plenty you will have seen here before, as the protagonists escape and get caught again and again, but this absolutely works with the title and theme of the film. The cat-obsessed owners of the house want that literal ‘cat and mouse’ chase. So there’s a reason for this happening, and it actually makes sense. Although because it happens consistently, a little bit of tension is lost.
Some of the ideas here do seem to be limited by the film’s budget. There are hints and mentions of transferring souls and similar things, but we never get to see it. I do love the idea though, what cat owner wouldn’t?! The slasher-lite chase is fine, but I would have liked to have seen more original ideas. Don’t Let The Cat Out doesn’t hold back with the violence though, and once again, the budget might become a little limiting but the gore is still there in smaller amounts.
What we do get is a well-trained acting cat who looks great in every scene, people dressed up and acting like cats in a basement dungeon/cat home and lots of cat ornaments, furniture and pictures. Although the script and setup are simple, the bizarreness keeps coming.
The acting performance to note is from Cerina Vincent as one of the homeowners. Not only is she known for her Power Rangers stint, genre fans might remember her from Cabin Fever. In Don’t Let The Cat Out she seems to enjoy the (almost) campiness of her role.
Director Tim Cruz previously made the supernatural horror Ladybug, and with Don’t Let The Cat Out he co-writes with its main star Antony Del Negro. This duo works well because Del Negro understands the exact tone of the movie, which can’t be easy for a stranger reading that script. I’d be surprised if the two of them don’t make another movie or two together, as they had previously with Ladybug. Horror fans should definitely keep an eye out.
*** 3/5
Don’t Let The Cat Out screened as part of this year’s London Frightfest.
