Film

The Cat and the Canary

Name: The Cat and the Canary
Genre: Comedy, Horror, Mystery
Released: 1939
Cast: Bob Hope, Paulette Goddard, John Beal, Douglass Montgomery, Gale Sondergaard

Other titles called The Cat and the Canary: the 1927 film.

Whodunit

Bob Hope steals a 1939 dark comedy about heirs summoned to a creepy mansion where a murderous lunatic is on the loose. It's genuinely unsettling one moment, side-splitting the next—Hope's wisecracking coward somehow makes the horror funnier and scarier at once. For anyone who loves comedy that doesn't flinch from actual menace.

TMDb rating

3.5

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you enjoy old-dark-house creepiness undercut by a quick-tongued leading man, where the scares and the wisecracks keep tripping over each other and nobody takes the cobwebs too seriously.

Skip it if you want horror that genuinely frightens, since this is creaking, stagey and more amused by its own gloom than invested in dread, and its jokes can feel dated.

What it asks of you: Brisk at barely over an hour, it hurries from one rattled exchange to the next, asking only a light evening's attention and patience with stagebound, shadowy sets.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

Arsenic and Old Lace1944

Cary Grant trapped in a house of murderous relatives, oscillating between farce and genuine darkness. The same tonal balance—comedy that never quite lets you forget the real danger underneath.

But The theatrical staging occasionally feels stagy, and some of the jokes about mental illness land differently now than they did in 1944.

The Old Dark House1932

James Whale's proto-slasher where strangers shelter in a sinister manor full of eccentric threats. Moody, genuinely frightening, with comedy that serves the atmosphere rather than overwhelming it.

But It's slower and darker than The Cat and the Canary—less wisecracks, more dread. Some viewers find the pacing glacial by modern standards.

Murders in the Rue Morgue1932

Bela Lugosi in Universal's atmospheric murder mystery with real horror and strange science. The DNA of the dark-house mystery, executed with extraordinary visual style and genuine creeping unease.

But It's more concerned with mood than logic. The plot sometimes takes a back seat to the atmosphere, which can feel slight if you're after a tight mystery.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from The Cat and the Canary

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

The Pink Panther1963

Both use comic ineptitude—a protagonist whose fear or stupidity creates actual danger rather than defusing it. Hope and Sellers are both masters of the coward who accidentally survives through sheer bumbling luck.

Peter Sellers as a bumbling detective chasing a jewel thief through elegant settings. Comedy built on physical slapstick and character rather than jokes—when the chaos erupts, it's because someone is genuinely incompetent, not playing at it.

But It's a heist caper, not a murder mystery, so the stakes feel lighter. Sellers' accent annoys some viewers, and the plot takes a back seat to his performance.

The Spiral Staircase1946

A killer stalking a vulnerable woman through a Gothic mansion. Suspenseful and genuinely nasty in ways that surprised audiences at the time, with no comedic safety valve.

But Darker and more sadistic than Hope's picture. If you're drawn to The Cat and the Canary's levity, this won't provide it.

House of Dracula1945

Universal's monster mash where Dracula, Frankenstein's creature, and the Wolf Man all show up. Pure fun that doesn't pretend to logic, just revels in the strangeness.

But It's silly in ways the earlier Universal films tried to avoid. If you want genuine scares, this dissolves into camp.

The Haunted Castle1921

An early horror-comedy about a séance in a mysterious mansion. Primitive by later standards but genuinely inventive with its trick photography and tonal mix.

But Silent film, obviously, and extremely dated. The pacing is glacial and some sequences feel interminable now.

The Ghost Breakers1940

Bob Hope and Paulette Goddard reunite for another comedy-horror romp, this time involving ghosts and treasure in a Cuban castle. More slapstick, equally enjoyable if you like this dynamic.

But It's essentially the same formula. If you've seen The Cat and the Canary, you've largely seen this—it's a pleasant retread, not a reinvention.

The Invisible Man1933

James Whale again, this time with Claude Rains and genuine invention. Science-fiction horror that's darkly funny without ever losing sight of the terror underneath.

But Less of a mystery than a character study of a man corrupted by power. The second half sags when it shifts from invention to repetition.

Phantom Lady1944

A noir-touched mystery with real menace and excellent atmosphere. More sophisticated plotting than The Cat and the Canary, with darker moral shadings.

But It's a straight mystery, not a dark comedy. If you're here for Hope's wisecracks and the tonal whiplash, this won't deliver it.

Scream1996

Both understand that comedy and horror live in the same neighborhood—the gap between what we expect and what happens. Both use audience knowledge (of tropes, of genre) as part of the machinery. Scream is The Cat and the Canary grown up and vicious, knowing exactly what scares us and why.

A masked killer stalks teenagers who know the rules of horror films and quote them constantly. It's horror that knows it's horror, with genuine scares and wit working in tandem rather than against each other.

But It's brutal in ways Hope's film never is—people you like die messily. The meta-commentary can feel smug, and some find the violence gratuitous.