MovieChat Forums > Sleepwalkers (1992) Discussion > Why didn't they do anything about all th...

Why didn't they do anything about all the cats in their yard?

posted 14 years ago by KrustytheDude
5 replies | jump to latest

They acted like there was nothing they could do but set traps. They could have gotten an attack dog to deal with them. They could have set out poisoned food. Or bought a gun with a silencer and just shoot them. Or at the very least just call Animal Control to come and remove them all. Or move to a more secluded area where there aren't any cats. Or move to a country where they like to eat cats, like China, and you'll be safe (heh I got that one from a review I read).

[–] harlemsushi 14 years ago

Well the one flaw is that when they originally left California they left in a hurry because the locals and law enforcement were on to them. Considering the unusual nature of the crime scene there may very well have been a manhunt for them so they are hiding out in a small town in Indiana. I'm not sure they were in town long enough to get a dog or whether that would've been the smartest course of action considering their transient nature. As far as Animal Control they were probably trying to stay as far off the radar of law enforcement as possible so that wouldn't have been the best move. Same w/ firing a gun, it would have attracted undue attention. Setting out antifreeze would've been a good idea since it is poisonous and cats are attracted to the taste but then you have a situation whee your property is surrounded by a lot of dead cats which raises suspicions. Moving to China while an option may or may not be very practical to them so I don't think it was a consideration. It was a bad situation they were in because they were literally surrounded by a natural predator that was numerous and literally had them under seige.

[–] KrustytheDude 14 years ago

Yes usually when you don't want to be noticed the last place you should move to is a small town where everybody knows everybody else. Obviously you move to a highly populated city area. There were many stupid things about this movie but not doing anything about all the cats is very stupid too. Wouldn't people notice all the cats in the yard regardless if they're dead or alive?

[–] harlemsushi 14 years ago

Yes usually when you don't want to be noticed the last place you should move to is a small town where everybody knows everybody else. Obviously you move to a highly populated city area.

Not so obvious really. The benefit of the small town is that they could in essence reinvent themselves and burden an underfunded sheriff's department with the chore of investigating odd murders and by the time they began to suspect them they'd be off to the next small town across state lines where the jurisdictions would not necessarily communicate with each other. That was their MO.

There were many stupid things about this movie but not doing anything about all the cats is very stupid too. Wouldn't people notice all the cats in the yard regardless if they're dead or alive?

The thing is we're not sure why they didn't do anything and their actions to me seem to indicate that they were in a sort of seige mode and waiting to feed before they took any action. As to whether or not anyone would've noticed the casts (dead or alive) that depends on their proximity to neighbors and the area they were in seemed desolate. But in the event that they did have nearby neighbors I think that their attitude was that it would be easier for them if someone else complained or if the death of the cats could be pinned on another so as not to bring attention to them.

[–] KrustytheDude 14 years ago

Yea they could have moved to a small town to reinvent themselves. Or they could have just moved to a big city where nobody would give them the time of day and you wouldn't have nosy teachers doing background checks on their students.

If they lived in a desolate area then they could have killed the cats and nobody would know. If they had neighbors nearby then the neighbors would see all the cats and wonder what the hell was going on and probably call the police or animal control. All they had to do was get a dog and it would have been fine.

Ah forget it this was a dumb movie anyways.

[–] harlemsushi 14 years ago

Yea they could have moved to a small town to reinvent themselves. Or they could have just moved to a big city where nobody would give them the time of day and you wouldn't have nosy teachers doing background checks on their students.

Well the only reason the teacher was looking into his file is because he wanted to take advantage of Charles and blackmail sex out of him. It wasn't because he was trying to be dilligent or be a good citizen and that scenario could just as easily happened in a big city. The only difference is that in a big city there is always someone watching and you'll always have a witness. You're notion that you disappear in a metropolis while being a popular idea is not necessarily reality. I mean in my city the entire downtown is under 24 hour surveilance and there is alwys someone else about.

If they lived in a desolate area then they could have killed the cats and nobody would know. If they had neighbors nearby then the neighbors would see all the cats and wonder what the hell was going on and probably call the police or animal control. All they had to do was get a dog and it would have been fine.

That's if they lived in a desolate area. We are not sure of their exact proximity to neighbors. Buying a dog due to their transient nature isn't something that would necessarily fit in well with their lifestyle and even if they did, they would have to enter an animal adoption into record and tend to the animal's care, along w/ training when they were trying to stay off the radar. Plus with all those cats I'm not sure one dog would have been enough and it would have created a prima facie case for animal cruelty putting them on the police's radar. The only thing they really could have done with the cats is set out antifreeze and dispose of the bodies after the fact.

Ah forget it this was a dumb movie anyways.

Eh, I like it. :)