Reflections of Murder

That "Reflections of Murder" is a cut above the average should come as no surprise with a strong cast under director John Badham. It's well paced with the suspense nicely controlled and underlined cleverly with the music of Bach. However the hazy filter through which it seems to have been filmed is out of character and unnecessary.

While fairly enjoyable, not much remains other than the enigma that is Tuesday Weld. Weld's previous film had been "Play It As It Lays" in which her underplayed but haunting performance was to have brought her the recognition her talent deserved. The movie flopped and vanished into oblivion. This turn of events seems to mark a turning point in Weld's career. It had become clear that major stardom would be something that would elude her.

Weld brings to her character in "Reflections of Murder" a complexity and intelligence not written in the script. She's played characters of weakness and vulnerability, strength and cunning, as well as the occasional psychotic; always with intelligence and conviction. Not to mention her natural beauty, which in "Reflections of Murder" is very reminiscent of Jean Seberg, a fellow enigmatic cinematic presence.

All the elements that go toward the making of a cult star are in place. For those among that following, "Reflections of Murder" is compulsory viewing.

There is a special chemistry at work in this movie, and its results are chilling. Tuesday Weld is far from the "Dobie Gillis" bimbo as she has often been portrayed. Joan Hackett is eerily on target and Sam Waterston is complex and intriguing. Especially effective (and spooky) is the set -- e.g. the swimming pool full of leaves in the autumn -- that contains who-knows-what. The original "Diabolique" has a classier title, but has fewer edges than this film. Highly recommended.

Joan Hackett and Sam Waterston run a boys' school on the large estate that's been in Joan's family for generations. While the students adore Joan—and vice versa—they fear her strict husband. Sam's former mistress, Tuesday Weld, also works at the school and is Joan's best friend. The two women are tired of getting pushed around, and Tuesday comes up with a plan to get Sam out of the way. . . permanently.

Don't be put off by Joan's mealy-mouthed character; she's supposed to be frustrating and inept! If she had any more of a backbone or a brain, she wouldn't have been bullied by her husband or coerced by her best friend to commit murder. As an actress, she does exactly what she's supposed to do for the audience to enjoy the flow of the story. Tuesday is also very good—and gives a great Mia Farrow impression—in her strength and take-charge-attitude. Those of you who are used to seeing Sam Waterston in good-guy roles will be very surprised to see him as an indisputable villain in Reflections of Murder, and he's able to pull it off surprisingly well, especially since he's so famous for being nice and kind. When all the actors give great performances, I tend to give credit to the director, so hats off to John Badham for yet another well-acted suspenseful flick!

If you like these types of movies, it's very entertaining. I'm a bit of a lightweight when it comes to scary movies, so Reflections of Murder is just as much as I can handle without hiding behind a pillow. Braver audiences might want to look for something spookier, but it was a great addition to my Halloween lineup!

made-for-tv remake of french suspense classic "Diabolique". Excellent script, eerie locale (the rain drenched and fog thickened landscape of Puget Sound), sharp editing and fine directing from John Badham make this far superior to average movie-of-the-week. And the performances could not be better. The great Joan Hackett (gone, alas, but not forgotten) and Tuesday Weld give tense, piercing performances. It takes a little while to get used to Sam Waterson playing a villian but when you see this film you understand how easy it is for Waterson to play the dark side of Jack McCoy on LAW AND ORDER. You will be on the edge of your chair during the scene on the bridge as the two women try to change a flat tire with a dead body in the trunk.

I saw this as a very small boy. A very early memory for me is of not being able to sleep for days, thinking that some dead bloke was rising out of the bath. Nice. Still, that'll teach me for pleading to stay up past bedtime. I can't imagine it would have the same effect on me now, but I'd love to see it again sometime