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The Black Cat (1934)
When: Thursday, October 8, 2026 at 6:30 PM
Where: The Scratching Post Cat and Board Game Cafe, 114 E. University Ave., Champaign, IL, 61820 — Champaign, IL
Price: Free
A delirious pre-Code horror classic, this 1930s nightmare is less a traditional monster movie than a collision of German Expressionism, Art Deco modernism, and pure cinematic weirdness. Its bold imagery, sinister eroticism, and gleefully macabre tone make it one of the strangest and most visually distinctive horror films of the classical Hollywood era. For fans of cult cinema, pre-Code Hollywood, and movies that seem to have escaped from another dimension, this is an essential big-screen discovery. The real attraction of this rarely seen gem is the legendary pairing of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi, reunited after The Mummy and given characters that allow their contrasting screen personas to collide spectacularly. But the film belongs just as much to Edgar G. Ulmer, whose strikingly economical direction wastes no time plunging audiences into an atmosphere of ominous architecture, occult obsession, sexual tension, and escalating madness.
Content Warnings: Horror violence, murder, occult imagery, Satanic themes, torture, nudity, and disturbing imagery.
USA 1934 • 69 min (1.37:1) • Not Rated | Directed by: Edgar G. UlmerStarring: Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, David Manners, Julie Bishop, Egbert Van AlstyneAdvance tickets: $10 ($8 for current members) | Regular admission: $12 (at the door)Presented by: Film-Fanatic.Club
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