Someone Behind the Door
(1971)
|
|
| 0Share... |
Someone Behind the Door
(1971)
|
|
| 0Share... |
| Cast overview: | |||
| Charles Bronson | ... |
The Stranger
|
|
| Anthony Perkins | ... |
Laurence Jeffries
|
|
| Jill Ireland | ... |
Frances Jeffries
|
|
|
|
Henri Garcin | ... |
Paul Damien
|
|
|
Adriano Magistretti | ... |
Andrew
|
|
|
Agathe Natanson | ... |
Lucy
|
|
|
Viviane Everly | ... |
Young Girl on Beach
|
| André Penvern | ... |
Intern
|
|
|
|
Carl Studer | ... |
Fisherman
(as Carl J. Studer)
|
|
|
Denise Péronne | ... |
Nurse
|
|
|
Isabelle Del Rio | ... |
Nurse
|
|
|
Silvana Blasi | ... |
Mrs. Evans
|
|
|
Colin Mann | ... |
Sgt. Gordon
|
|
|
Yves Elliot | ... |
Policeman
|
Dr. Laurence Jeffries, a neurosurgeon, intent on his research, neglects his wife Frances. The frustrated woman accordingly takes a lover, Paul Damien, a French journalist. When he realizes what is going on, Laurence has only one thing in mind, vengeance. A diabolical idea comes to him: why not use one of his patients, an amnesiac, as his instrument of revenge? He soon implements his plan, taking the amnesiac into his home and making him believe that Frances is HIS wife, that she cheats on him and that he has to eliminate her... Written by Guy Bellinger
Bronson's fans would be very surprised ,had they the opportunity to see this Nicolas Gessner movie.He's not here the he-man they expect.He plays an amnesiac,caught like a fly in a cobweb by shrink Perkins.In this kind of thriller ,Perkins' "psycho prestige" works and it makes the audience feel he's watching a Hitchcock ersatz-which is not that much bad after all,a Hitchcock ersatz may be much better than a genuine X....... thriller.The main problem lies in the fact that most of the time,it seems like a filmed stage production.Hitchcock could easily get away with such works as "the rope " or "dial M for murder".Gessner has not his genius and his directing becomes sometimes ponderous. Hitchcok's lessons will be much better applied on "sleuth" ,Mankiewicz's triumph the following year,and to a lesser degree,on Penn's "dead of winter" (1987).
Late Jill Ireland plays the female part ,as it was often the case in those days,as far Bronson movies were concerned.Nicolas Gessner continued his work with American actors on his follow-up which would be a long time coming (late seventies) "la petite fille au bout du chemin" (the little girl who lives down the lane)and featured Jodie Foster and Martin Sheen.It was probably his best .Then he worked abroad without great success.His most notable work was for French TV "le château des oliviers " (early nineties,with Brigitte Fossey)which gained the audience's approval.