This story centers around Irena and Paul Gallier, played by Natassja Kinski and Malcolm McDowell. They are an estranged brother and sister as she was raised by adoptive parents. The day after Irena arrives Paul goes missing. We are then introduced to Oliver Yates played by John Heard as the head of the local zoo. He is called in when a black panther is discovered with a dead hooker in a hotel. By pure happenstance Irena and Oliver end up meeting and she starts to date him. When Paul returns he makes sexual advances on Irena, insisting that they can only mate with each other or they will turn into the black panther and kill others. Irena tries to hide from the truth but she is inexorably drawn to Oliver.
Back when I first saw this movie, what seems like forever ago, it was quite creepy if not scary. I just had the chance to rematch this and I can say that it seemed to drag on a bit. This was one of the entries into the horror genre that tried to tell a story, and it did indeed tell one. I would say that it seemed like McDowell over acted a bit, but that could have been the director's decision.There is not a lot of sex or nudity in here, but Natassja walks around the entire movie without a bra and wearing transparent clothing. She is in a couple of nude scenes, one with a very explicit full frontal shot where her genitals are clearly seen. Annette O'Toole also has a rather lengthy topless scene. This is a solid thriller that does take some concentration to make it through when viewed through the lens of modern movies.
Back when I first saw this movie, what seems like forever ago, it was quite creepy if not scary. I just had the chance to rematch this and I can say that it seemed to drag on a bit. This was one of the entries into the horror genre that tried to tell a story, and it did indeed tell one. I would say that it seemed like McDowell over acted a bit, but that could have been the director's decision.There is not a lot of sex or nudity in here, but Natassja walks around the entire movie without a bra and wearing transparent clothing. She is in a couple of nude scenes, one with a very explicit full frontal shot where her genitals are clearly seen. Annette O'Toole also has a rather lengthy topless scene. This is a solid thriller that does take some concentration to make it through when viewed through the lens of modern movies.