Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- eerie
- foreboding
- paranoid
- classic horror night
- film noir marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly regard the film as an atmospheric and influential Val Lewton horror mystery that achieves suspense through suggestion and psychological uncertainty.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Jacques Tourneur and Val Lewton build the leopard attacks through shadows, sound, reactions, and withheld imagery.
The escaped leopard is treated as the obvious explanation while Jerry and Kiki question whether it is responsible for the deaths.
The missing leopard triggers a hunt across the New Mexico countryside and turns unexplained attacks into a local crisis.
The New Mexico setting, fortune teller Maria, and cult-related imagery give the mystery a folkloric atmosphere.
Films like The Leopard Man, and why
Cat People
shared atmospheric horror, implied violence, and a suspected animal threat concealing a human killer
I Walked with a Zombie
shared producer Val Lewton sensibility, psychological suspense, shadowy atmosphere, and suggestion over gore
The Night of the Hunter
shared proto-slasher structure, rural panic, investigative mystery, and unseen menace
Movie Details
- Director
- Jacques Tourneur
- Release Date
- 1943-05-08
- Runtime
- 66 min
- Rating
- 6.5 / 10 (133)
Cast
- Dennis O'Keefe
- Margo
- Jean Brooks
- Isabel Jewell
- James Bell
- Margaret Landry
- Abner Biberman
- Tuulikki Paananen
- Ben Bard
- Ed Agresti
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- YouTube TV
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is The Leopard Man about?
- A publicity stunt unleashes a leopard and a creeping murder mystery in the shadowy New Mexico night.
- What is The Leopard Man like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of The Leopard Man as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is The Leopard Man violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in The Leopard Man as graphic.
- What did critics think of The Leopard Man?
- Critics broadly regard the film as an atmospheric and influential Val Lewton horror mystery that achieves suspense through suggestion and psychological uncertainty.
- Which films are like The Leopard Man?
- Films with a similar feel include Cat People, I Walked with a Zombie, and The Night of the Hunter.
- How long is The Leopard Man?
- The Leopard Man runs 66 minutes.
- Where can I watch The Leopard Man?
- In United States, The Leopard Man streams on YouTube TV.
