A male lead inescapably prone to typecasting. A young, nubile actress who disowned her work in the film. A first-time director with scarce screen credits following the film. A screenplay by a primary writer who worked on the 60's Batman TV show.
All of these should point to the fate of such a film being either an unparalleled disaster or the type of movie that's bland enough that it doesn't get a home video release and sporadic TV airings over the next few decades.
Pretty Poison almost falls into the latter category, but it's the epitome of a "minor masterpiece," practically flawless as a crime film and brilliantly offbeat as a thriller.
Boy (Anthony Perkins) meets girl (Tuesday Weld, never more beautiful), boy has just been released from the funny farm for arson, girl is smart but is on her despicably overprotective mother's short leash. Boy tells girl he's a secret agent, girl exploits this fact. But no chaotic hearts can be free of the trouble in hindsight...
It predates Badlands, True Romance, Wild at Heart, Natural Born Killers, and every other bad boy meets sweet girl crime/romance tale, and I loved every nuanced minute of it.
Anthony Perkins makes Dennis Pitt far less like Norman Bates and more of a mild-mannered and soft-spoken individual who rather than commit violent acts a la Psycho, he views the entire spectrum of his romance with Sue (Tuesday Weld) as a game.
Tuesday Weld, on the other hand, if the Megan Foxes and Kristen Stewarts of the world could give a performance as complex as hers as Sue Ann Stepanek. Normally, the character would be used in the relationship, but Weld plays her as young and experiencing the adult world for the first time, and the relationship between herself and her mother as well as with Dennis culminates in a violent and tragic end. The edge she fringes on, it's easy to see Sue Ann as a forerunner to Sharon Stone's turn as Catherine Trammell in Basic Instinct.
If you haven't seen this one, track it down as quickly as possible on your Netflix. This is a dormant, shiny bag of gold coins looking for a place in the Scrooge McDuck-like vault of cinematic gold.
All of these should point to the fate of such a film being either an unparalleled disaster or the type of movie that's bland enough that it doesn't get a home video release and sporadic TV airings over the next few decades.
Pretty Poison almost falls into the latter category, but it's the epitome of a "minor masterpiece," practically flawless as a crime film and brilliantly offbeat as a thriller.
Boy (Anthony Perkins) meets girl (Tuesday Weld, never more beautiful), boy has just been released from the funny farm for arson, girl is smart but is on her despicably overprotective mother's short leash. Boy tells girl he's a secret agent, girl exploits this fact. But no chaotic hearts can be free of the trouble in hindsight...
It predates Badlands, True Romance, Wild at Heart, Natural Born Killers, and every other bad boy meets sweet girl crime/romance tale, and I loved every nuanced minute of it.
Anthony Perkins makes Dennis Pitt far less like Norman Bates and more of a mild-mannered and soft-spoken individual who rather than commit violent acts a la Psycho, he views the entire spectrum of his romance with Sue (Tuesday Weld) as a game.
Tuesday Weld, on the other hand, if the Megan Foxes and Kristen Stewarts of the world could give a performance as complex as hers as Sue Ann Stepanek. Normally, the character would be used in the relationship, but Weld plays her as young and experiencing the adult world for the first time, and the relationship between herself and her mother as well as with Dennis culminates in a violent and tragic end. The edge she fringes on, it's easy to see Sue Ann as a forerunner to Sharon Stone's turn as Catherine Trammell in Basic Instinct.
If you haven't seen this one, track it down as quickly as possible on your Netflix. This is a dormant, shiny bag of gold coins looking for a place in the Scrooge McDuck-like vault of cinematic gold.
