El eslabón del Niágara

Many directors have tried their hand at a "Hitchcock" - that unique blend of romance, glamour and suspense combined with great stars, and shaped by a distinctive directorial style. Of all the efforts, I have always liked Jonathan Demme's "Last Embrace" best. Did he get the mix right? Well not exactly, and critics at the time were quick to point out where he had missed the mark. However, instead of just being a flawed Hitchcock homage, I think "Last Embrace" stands up well as an enjoyable movie in its own right.

Harry Hannan, a secret service agent, has fallen foul of both the government agency he works for, and a mysterious killer who leaves notes for intended victims written in ancient Aramaic. He receives help from a woman, Ellie Fabian, who he initially finds annoying and intrusive, but later, his feelings for her change. The plot is complex and contains many layers. It features an ending at Niagara Falls that has strong echoes of Hitchcock's classic "North By Northwest".

It seems Demme had doubts about the finished film. He felt he had tried so hard to get the Hitchcock style that he had neglected content. But surely he is too hard on himself as he made up for any shortcomings by delivering a film of considerable style and mood. Based on a novel, "The 13th Man" by Murray Teigh Bloom, Demme and his team created a new story around the basic plot with the result that the film, in my opinion, emerged as the superior work.

Demme called on the services of Miklos Rozsa for the music. Rozsa scored only one movie for Hitchcock - "Spellbound" - but his style was distinctive and the score for "Last Embrace" brings to mind that famous romantic thriller.

Where "Last Embrace" lost out in comparison to the great Hitchcock films such as "Spellbound", "Notorious", "North by Northwest" and "Vertigo" was not only in the absence of a little more humour but also in the weight of its stars.

Hitchcock's best films featured stars that were already Hollywood icons - James Stewart, Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman and Grace Kelly. Although Roy Scheider, was a fine actor he was never an icon. On the other hand, Janet Margolin is so little known that comparisons with Bergman, Kelly or even Kim Novak are superfluous, she also projected a more neurotic edge than Hitchcock's cool blondes. But she was beautiful and talented. I still remember in 1993 being shocked to see her name on Premiere's list of actors who had died that year - she was only 50. I think she brought a lot to this movie especially when it is seen simply as an intriguing and well-made thriller.

Demme has not repeated the Hitchcock homage, but has gone on to hone his own distinctive directorial style - "Silence of the Lambs" gained him an Academy Award - one prize Hitchcock never received. "Last Embrace" is not easy to find these days but let's hope that right now, somewhere in a studio warehouse, the masters are being dusted off ready for a belated, but well-deserved DVD release.

This is an engrossing thriller -- clearly in the vein established by Hitchcock -- and very much like Brian De Palma's carefully structured style. This is the first Jonathan Demme film I saw and I expected him to work more in this genre. Fortunately, he directed a cornucopeia of film in various styles that vary between intriguing and amazing: including "Melvin and Howard," "Stop Making Sense," "Philadelphia," and one of the best films for repeat viewing, "The Silence of the Lambs." This film stands out from the standard murder mystery in that it presents a non-standard view of Jews who immigrated to the US. To divulge more would spoil the film. Roy Scheider is perfect and Janet Margolin is beautiful. In addition , now -- nearly 25 years later -- it is fun watching Chris Walken, John Glover and Mandy Patinkin early in their careers. It is funny to realize that Margolin, Walken and Glover were all in "Annie Hall" two years earlier.

I don't know exactly why I find this film interesting. The plot is pretty thick and often hard to follow and sometimes the story moves at a glacial pace. Still, it's rather neat. Roy Scheider always looks kewl when carefully groomed in up to date wardrobes. And the nose, that nose, pointing in half a dozen different directions at the same time. Janet Margolin was so beautiful. It's difficult to take your eyes from her when she in on screen. She projects a sort of pathos, a winsome helplessness, even after is is revealed that she can be a pretty cold-blooded babe underneath all that vulnerability, a primordial fatale monstrum. She has one or two sexy scenes that almost in themselves justify watching the movie. And I've always found John Glover a magnetic actor. He's never quite able to mask that Maryland accent. Here he plays a snobbish Princeton professor in seersucker, jealous of Margolin's attraction to Scheider. And when we first see Sam Levene's face, as a stranger on a train, there is the shock of recognition on our part. What a long absence, Sam! Nice shots of Princeton's campus. There's a shoot-out (the only one) in the empty quad and campanile producing enough ringing bells to drive you mad, which Miklos Roszas score does not to. It's unmistakably his own and evokes other earlier black and white noirs. The climactic scene was shot at Niagara Falls.

6 out of 10

A mysterious man, who works for a mysterious organization, is being chased by some mysterious killers, for some unknown and mysterious reason. Has all the trappings of a bubblegum thriller and when you scrape away all the flashiness that is really all you get.

Not that it isn't entertaining. The camera movements and angles are downright dazzling. I especially liked those frantic zoom shots that look like it's shot from a camera put on a roller coaster car. There is also some interesting use of lighting and framing. Not to mention some terrific on location shooting especially the Niagara Falls finale. The story is very fast paced with a new twist coming with literally every scene. There is also a wide assortment of other gimmicks used that on a non-think level can be fun, especially during the first hour. The haunting music score is good too although it gets played a bit too much.

The problem really comes with the fact that all these twists and turns really add up to a lot of nothing. Too much is left unexplained and the final revelation seems far-fetched. There is a wide segment of other loopholes and there is just the plain old fact that you have probably seen a lot of this before. It also becomes very cliched and even kind of annoying at the end. The film expects you to become close to characters that on the whole are very poorly fleshed out.

The movie does offer a great opportunity to see Janet Margolin who is a very uniquely and naturally beautiful woman. Even when she is made to look frumpy she is beautiful. She has a face that looks like it never got past 21. She closely resembles 80's porn stars Kelly Nichols or Jennifer Noxt.

Scheider does not fare as well. He looks alright, but his presence is very transparent. He just doesn't seem to have a strong enough personality or acting ability to really create a memorable or forceful impression. Also that white suit he wears all the time has really got to go.

Overall despite it's best efforts it is still just a poor man's Hitchcock. The real thing is still better.

I watched "Last Embrace" for the first time late last night, having recorded it off BBC1 over three (!) years ago.

It was worth the wait. Roy Scheider's character is a simmering, paranoid wreck who is haunted by guilt over his wife's recent and violent death. He feels that he is surplus to requirements in his job (a hitman)and begins to see his wife's brother (Charles Napier) as a deadly enemy. He is half right. A belltower scene blatantly stolen from "Vertigo" helps solve this particular problem but now Scheider has to face up to dark threats posed by a Hebraic note sent to him. And to complicate matters he falls in love with a young woman (the sexy, late Janet Margolin) with whom he is temporarily sharing his apartment.

Two strong and gutsy performances from the two leading characters maintain the suspense levels right to the dramatic climax.

Demme's best '70s effort (slightly shading it over "Fighting Mad" and "Citizen's Band" but miles better than his overrated debut, "Caged Heat")

8/10