These's never a bad time to watch cat videos. If you live in NYC, you're going to want to head down to the Metrograph starting Friday to see Kedi, an amazing new documentary about the scrappy stray cats of Istanbul. Our review calls the film "impossible to resist" and, visually speaking, like "The Shining, but with cats."
In celebration of Kedi, we salute the finest felines on film. Here are our five favorite cats in movies:
Alien (1979) Is it weird to have a pet on an interstellar space voyage? It’s one of the many touches that makes Ridley Scott’s sci-fi thriller so unforgettable. Jonesy, a Ginger Tom, also figures prominently in the plot.
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961) “Poor slob! Poor slob without a name.” That’s Audrey Hepburn in her pajamas, talking about her apartment mate (a tabby played by Orangey, a famous Hollywood animal performer). Again, the whole plot turns on this feline.
Inside Llewyn Davis (2013) As cat-centric as indies get, the Coen brothers' downbeat folk fantasia pivoted around a surly orange tabby cat (two, actually, if you know the film). Joel Coen admitted that the film didn't have much of a plot: "That's why we threw the cat in."
La Dolce Vita (1960) This kitten’s only onscreen for a single scene, but the fact that he steals the movie away from the two sexiest actors on the planet—Anita Ekberg and Marcello Mastroianni—proves his animal attraction.
You Only Live Twice (1967) Lounging in the lap of evil mastermind and James Bond archnemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld has its benefits. Just ask this bored-looking white Persian, whose blasé demeanor adds a ton of attitude.