Plot Synopsis:
Unflappable and unstoppable mouse secret agent Nick Grabovsky (László Sinkó) with his deadpan voice, baggy pants and a big "G" on his shirt, goes up against the criminal cat gang run by the sinister, metal-pawed Mr. Teufel (Miklós Benedek), in Hungarian director Béla Ternovszky's surreal, animated sci-fi treasure. Set in the year 80 AMM ("After Mickey Mouse") on Planet X where cats and rats have banded together to eliminate mice, the film features a show-stopping series of musical numbers including a deranged Euro-disco song ("Just purr with me / Touch me with tender paws") and a bizarre chorus of Mexican vampire bats named Los Vampiros who inhabit an ancient Mayan temple.
A cross between 1980s Don Bluth-style animation (THE SECRET OF NIMH) and the British TV series "Danger Mouse" (clearly an inspiration here), CAT CITY has long been a beloved cult favorite in Eastern Europe – recently restored by the National Film Institute in Hungary from the original 35mm camera negative for its first-ever U.S. Blu-ray release by Deaf Crocodile. In Hungarian with English subtitles.
- NEW 4K RESTORATION by the National Film Institute in Hungary from the original 35mm camera
- NEW "The Director Answers: Béla Ternovsky" - 2023, 23 min. Dir. Yvonne Kerékgyártó – interview with Béla Ternovszkym.
- NEW video interview with György Ráduly, Director of the National Film Institute-Film Archive in Budapest on Hungarian animation and the enduring popularity of CAT CITY, moderated by Dennis Bartok of Deaf Crocodile (In English)
- NEW commentary track by film critic Samm Deighan
- NEW essay by film critic Walter Chaw (Film Freak Central)
- NEW optional 5.1 audio mix, plus original 2.0 track
- Three rare Béla Ternovszky animated shorts:
- "Modern Training Methods (Modern edzésmódszerek)" - 1970, 7 min. Ternovszky's delightfully wicked and gruesome satire of athletic training
- "Let Us Keep A Dog (Tartsunk kutyát)" – 1974, 6 min. For dog lovers everywhere, this classic Pannonia Studio short fueled by a wildly groovy 70s Jazz-Funk score
- "Where Is The Limit? (Mindennek van határa)" – 1975, 7 min. A cheerfully oblivious orange figure bumbles from one surreal situation into another, until he discovers he can escape from the cartoon world into the real one – with unexpected consequences
- "Ahead Of Its Time (Megel?zte a maga korát)" – 2020, 25 min. Dir. Péter Szalay. Fascinating video essay produced by the National Film Institute of Hungary on the creative genesis of CAT CITY and its importance in Hungarian animation
- "We Just Made It For The Fun Of It (Jókedvünkben készítettük)" – 2020, 30 min. Dir. Péter Szalay. CAT CITY director Béla Ternovszky discusses his long creative career at Pannonia Studio and the making of his most famous film, illustrated with rare film footage, stills and animation sketches
- Optional English subtitles
