Marry in haste. Remake in leisure. Watch in boredom. (Originally reviewed for DVDsnapshot.com)
Official Synopsis:
A powerfully tense remake of the Alfred
Hitchcock classic, this British production of Suspicion boasts
a dynamic cast, making it a worthy descendant of the original.
Anthony Andrews (The King's Speech)
stars as notorious playboy Johnnie Aysgarth, a seemingly wealthy and
carefree bachelor. Jane Curtin (Saturday
Night Live, Coneheads)
plays Lina, a lonely American who is instantly charmed by Johnnie's
arrogant wit. After a whirlwind romance, the couple marries, after
which unpleasant truths begin to emerge. Johnnie is broke and a
compulsive gambler, a deadly combination. Desperate for money, he
starts borrowing against her life insurance policy, and curiously
develops an interest in murder mysteries. Lina soon fears for her
safety, her paranoia exploding into hysteria after one of Johnnie's
friends suffers an unfortunate accident.
A
white-knuckle thriller directed with elegance and a morbid wit by
Andrew Grieve (Agatha
Christie's Poirot),
Suspicion
is a well-executed mystery that will raise goosebumps, and perhaps
some suspicions about your own spouse.
Our Take:
The original Suspicion
is one of the few Alfred Hitchcock films I haven't seen. A failure
for a film reviewer, but it means I can't compare it's style, flair,
or big stars against this American
Playhouse
television adaptation from 1988... which is good as this remake lacks
both style and flair.
Johnnie is a dead-broke blue-blooded playboy who meets Lina, an American her own wealthy parents describe as “spinsterish.” Their short courtship, based on mutual-but-incompatible needs, leads them to marriage while they're really still strangers. Lina quickly learns it's not a good idea to get involved in a man you think might be trying to murder you. Is she paranoid, observant, or just working out how much she screwed up by marrying this cheap jerk?
Johnnie is a dead-broke blue-blooded playboy who meets Lina, an American her own wealthy parents describe as “spinsterish.” Their short courtship, based on mutual-but-incompatible needs, leads them to marriage while they're really still strangers. Lina quickly learns it's not a good idea to get involved in a man you think might be trying to murder you. Is she paranoid, observant, or just working out how much she screwed up by marrying this cheap jerk?
