A patient of psychiatrist Sam Rice (Roy Scheider) has been murdered. A mysterious woman, Brooke Reynolds (Meryl Streep), was his lover. Rice meets her and begins to fall in love. But he starts to suspect that she killed his patient...and he's next on the list.
I saw this in a theatre in 1982. For some stupid reason MGM/UA chose to release this quiet, small thriller during the Christmas season! It was clobbered by the critics and audiences stayed away (the theatre I saw it in was almost empty).
I remember not liking it but I didn't hate it. The film has definite problems. It's WAY too quiet, too dark (almost every scene takes place at night) and totally lacks the edge a good nasty thriller should have--everything is so perfect and nice. Also the plot has HUGE loopholes (I love how the police just kept making assumptions and just believe it's true). Scheider (a good actor) is too straight-faced in his role and Streep's little mannerisms (hands always moving, CONSTANTLY playing with her hair) made me want to strike her. Jessica Tandy is good but she's only in two scenes.
Still the film is well-directed, has a number of eerie scenes (especially the one with Scheider alone in a deserted laundry room) and does move quickly.
But it's too quiet for its own good and the plot needs work. I give it a 6.
I saw this in a theatre in 1982. For some stupid reason MGM/UA chose to release this quiet, small thriller during the Christmas season! It was clobbered by the critics and audiences stayed away (the theatre I saw it in was almost empty).
I remember not liking it but I didn't hate it. The film has definite problems. It's WAY too quiet, too dark (almost every scene takes place at night) and totally lacks the edge a good nasty thriller should have--everything is so perfect and nice. Also the plot has HUGE loopholes (I love how the police just kept making assumptions and just believe it's true). Scheider (a good actor) is too straight-faced in his role and Streep's little mannerisms (hands always moving, CONSTANTLY playing with her hair) made me want to strike her. Jessica Tandy is good but she's only in two scenes.
Still the film is well-directed, has a number of eerie scenes (especially the one with Scheider alone in a deserted laundry room) and does move quickly.
But it's too quiet for its own good and the plot needs work. I give it a 6.