KISS HER GOODBYE - 1959
This low budget film stars Steven Hill, Elaine Stritch, and in her film debut, a 19 year old Sharon Farrell.
Hill and Farrell are driving along the coast heading for Florida when their car conks out. They hitch a ride into the nearby burg with local farmer, Andrew Prine. They snag a room at the local beach motel ran by Dan Reed and his daughter, Elaine Stritch.
We now discover that Miss Farrell is not quite all there in the brain-pan department. She has the body of a nubile young woman, but the mind of a 8 year-old. Hill needs to keep a close watch on Farrell to make sure there is no "interference" from the male population.
The next day, Hill gets himself a job as a mechanic for local service station owner, Gene Lyons. He agrees to work for free for a week if he can fix his car using the station equipment. Lyon's happens to need a man, so he agrees to the deal. While all this is happening, a rather under dressed, Farrell is heating up the non-female types in town. Of course Farrell has no idea of the effect she has on the opposite sex.
Hill starts to take an interest in Stritch and tells her about his sister's problems. Stritch, who recently became a widow with a young child, likewise takes a shine to Hill. She loves how he does everything he can to look after Farrell. Stritch even overlooks an incident where Farrell wanders off with Strich's baby. She decides to help the girl, and puts her to work as a waitress in the motel café.
Needless to say this is not the best of ideas, as the male customers try to put the moves on her. Farrell wigs out and tries to stab several of the swine. Hill is summoned from the station to calm the girl down. Hill admits that Farrell can become somewhat unhinged when pressed by unwanted attention. She has been known to hurt people. He tells Stritch, that Farrell and himself will be moving on as soon as the car is repaired.
Farrell decides to run off and is soon picked up by service station owner, Gene Lyons. He offers the girl a silver locket if she will come for a ride with him. Of course we all know what this "ride" means. Hill finds Farrell back at the motel with ripped and blood covered clothes. He also recognizes the locket as the same one Lyons had been showing around the station. The upset Hill goes a-hunting for Lyons.
Next, we find the local law, Howard Fischer, talking to Hill while looking over a battered and quite dead Lyons. Hill admits to the killing, but the medical examiner is sure Hill had nothing to do with it. It was of course Farrell bashing Lyons with a handy blunt object that did the deed. Hill is just trying to protect his little sister to the last.
They head back to the motel to find that Farrell has again wandered off. They find her body floating in the surf near some rocks. Hill is upset, but also relieved, as he knew he could not have protected her forever.
This low rent potboiler was written by pulp writers, Robert Allison Wade and H. William Miller. The two published under the name, Wade Miller. Some of their more famous film work, includes, A CRY IN THE NIGHT, TOUCH OF EVIL, GUILTY BYSTANDER and WARNING SHOT.
The cast does some nice work here. The only real weak point is the static direction of Albert Lipton, whose work was limited to just this film. It should have looked better with veteran cinematographer, Art Ornitz at the controls. Ornitz was the d of p on, THE PUSHER, REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT, THE ANDERSON TAPES, BADGE 373, SERPICO and DEATH WISH.
Farrell is very good as the unknowing "femme-fatale" who can't help drawing men in.
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