Cat Ballou

UPC: 043396048645

Studio: Columbia TriStar

MPAA Rating: NR   Contains:[Mild Violence, Adult Situations, Suitable for Children, Western Violence]

Summary: This musical spoof of Westerns featured Lee Marvin in dual roles that won him a Best Actor Oscar. Jane Fonda stars as the title character, a prim schoolmarm returning to her hometown of Wolf City, Wyoming, after receiving an Eastern education. On the train ride, Cat meets up with a pair of friendly, charming crooks, Clay Boone (Michael Callan) and his uncle, Jed (Dwayne Hickman), the former becoming hopelessly smitten with the naive but tough Cat. Upon arriving home, Cat discovers that her eccentric father, Frankie (John Marley), is being threatened with bodily harm by a development company that desperately wants his land. When Frankie is murdered by ruthless, noseless killer Tim Strawn (Marvin), Cat straps on a pair of six-shooters and persuades Clay, Jed, and her father's loyal Native American hand Jackson Two-Bears (Tom Nardini) to sign on as her posse. In her quest for revenge, Cat also recruits Kid Shelleen (also played by Marvin), a one-time fearsome gunslinger who's now a hopeless alcoholic. Cat Ballou (1965) is interspersed throughout the narrative with appearances by Stubby Kaye and Nat King Cole as a pair of balladeers who comment on the action musically in Greek chorus style. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Category: Western

Awards: Best Foreign Actor – British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Director – Directors Guild of America Best Picture - Musical or Comedy – null Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – null Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical – null New Star of the Year - Male – null Best Original Song – null Best Original Song – null Best Actor – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Adapted Screenplay – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Adapted Screenplay – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Editing – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Adapted Score – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Best Song – Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Silver Bear for Best Actor – Berlin International Film Festival Special Mention – Berlin International Film Festival Special Mention – Berlin International Film Festival Best Actor – National Board of Review Best Original Song – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical or – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Original Song – Hollywood Foreign Press Association New Star of the Year - Male – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical – Hollywood Foreign Press Association Best Picture - Musical or Comedy – Hollywood Foreign Press Association

Features: Digitally mastered audio and anamorphic video
Widescreen and full-screen presentations
Audio: English [mono]
Subtitles: English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, Thai
Featurette: "The Legend of Cat Ballou" with director Elliot Silverstein
Lead actors Michael Callan and Dwayne Hickman audio commentary
Vintage advertising
Theatrical trailers
Talent files
Interactive menus
Production notes
Scene selections

Cat Ballou

Format: DVD

Release Date: 08/08/2000

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Theatre Wide-Screen, 1.33:1 Pre-1954 Standard

Audio: 1 USA & territories, Canada

Runtime: 96 Minutes

Sides: 2

Number of Discs: 1

Language(s) English

Subtitles: English,Spanish,Portuguese

Region: USA & territories, Canada

Chapters: Side #1
0. Side #1
0. Scene Selection
1. Start. [3:27]
2. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [2:58]
3. Drunk as a skunk. [2:22]
4. Comforting the sinner. [3:17]
5. Berth control. [2:54]
6. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:02]
7. The ranch. [2:44]
8. Tim Strawn. [1:34]
9. Harvest day celebration. [2:30]
10. Square dance/war dance. [6:57]
11. Strange bedfellows. [5:07]
12. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:38]
13. Kid Shelleen. [6:43]
14. Sticking to Frankie. [3:40]
15. "They'll never make her cry". [3:21]
16. "Happy birthday". [:35]
17. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:12]
18. Butch Cassidy. [1:56]
19. Making plans. [3:10]
20. Robbing a train. [2:01]
21. Hole-in-the-wall. [5:59]
22. Getting into shape. [8:26]
23. The kid vs. strawn. [7:04]
24. Clay proposes marriage. [2:20]
25. Consolation. [3:40]
26. Off the wagon. [5:05]
27. Noose hangs high. [:39]
28. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [2:27]
Side #2
0. Side #2
0. Scene Selection
1. Start. [3:27]
2. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [2:58]
3. Drunk as a skunk. [2:22]
4. Comforting the sinner. [3:17]
5. Berth control. [2:54]
6. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:02]
7. The ranch. [2:44]
8. Tim Strawn. [1:34]
9. Harvest day celebration. [2:30]
10. Square dance/war dance. [6:57]
11. Strange bedfellows. [5:07]
12. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:38]
13. Kid Shelleen. [6:43]
14. Sticking to Frankie. [3:40]
15. "They'll never make her cry". [3:21]
16. "Happy birthday". [:35]
17. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [1:12]
18. Butch Cassidy. [1:56]
19. Making plans. [3:10]
20. Robbing a train. [2:01]
21. Hole-in-the-wall. [5:59]
22. Getting into shape. [8:26]
23. The kid vs. strawn. [7:04]
24. Clay proposes marriage. [2:20]
25. Consolation. [3:40]
26. Off the wagon. [5:05]
27. Noose hangs high. [:39]
28. "The ballad of Cat Ballou". [2:27]

Michael Betzold

Cat Ballou is a marvelous spoof of Westerns, a precursor to the likes of Blazing Saddles, Wild Wild West and other send-ups of the genre. Lee Marvin won an Academy Award -- a rare nod for a comedy performance -- for his roles as a drunken gunman and his evil twin. Jane Fonda plays the 1900s-era schoolmarm Catherine Ballou with sass and vinegar; it's among her best work. What really sets the film apart is the hilarious running ballad which ties together the narrative, using Nat King Cole and Stubby Kaye as a cowpoke Greek chorus. The film's score and the song "The Ballad of Cat Ballou" were both Oscar-nominated, as was the screenplay adaptation by Walter Newman and Frank R. Pierson. Though there are dull stretches, this is a one-of-a-kind comic classic, thanks to the sure hand of director Eliot Silverstein. ~ Michael Betzold, Rovi

Cast and Crew: Carol Veazie  Actor 
Ted White  Actor 
Dorothy Claire  Actor 
Duke Hobbie  Actor 
Robert Phillips  Actor 
Ayllene Gibbons  Actor 
Harry Harvey  Actor 
Chuck Roberson  Actor 
Joe Hamilton  Actor 
Gail Bonney  Actor 
Hallene Hill  Actor 
Charles Wagenheim  Actor 
Nick Cravat  Actor 
Charles Horvath  Actor 
Roy Chanslor  Screenwriter 
Mack David  Composer (Music Score) 
Frank De Vol  Composer (Music Score) 
Harold Hecht  Producer 
Jerry Livingston  Composer (Music Score) 
Walter Newman  Screenwriter 
Frank Pierson  Screenwriter 
Elliot Silverstein  Director 
Jane Fonda  Actor 
Lee Marvin  Actor 
Michael Callan  Actor 
Dwayne Hickman  Actor 
Nat "King" Cole  Actor 
Stubby Kaye  Actor 
Tom Nardini  Actor 
John Marley  Actor 
Reginald Denny  Actor 
Jay C. Flippen  Actor 
Arthur Hunnicutt  Actor 
Bruce Cabot  Actor 
Burt Mustin  Actor 
Paul Gilbert  Actor 

Country: USA