Ordeal (TV 1973)

Left to die in the desert by his wife and her lover, a businessman fights to survive and get his revenge.

Director:

Lee H. Katzin

Writers:

Francis M. Cockrell (teleplay), Leon Tokatyan (teleplay),

Stars:

Arthur Hill, Diana Muldaur, James Stacy

Cast

Cast overview:
Arthur Hill	...	Richard Damian
Diana Muldaur	...	Kay Damian
James Stacy	...	Andy Folsom
Macdonald Carey	...	Eliot Frost
Michael Ansara	...	Sheriff Peter Geeson
Arch Whiting	...	Fred
Bill Catching	...	Joe Duncan
Len Felber	...	Ralph

Storyline

Left to die in the desert by his wife and her lover, a businessman fights to survive and get his revenge.

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Plot Keywords:

desert | left to die | wilderness | broken leg | remake | 

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

30 October 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Die Feuerprobe

Filming Locations:

Red Rock Canyon State Park - Highway 14, Cantil, California, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

20th Century Fox Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

This movie was the last appearance that James Stacy made before losing his left arm and left leg in a 1973 motorcycle accident involving a drunk driver.

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Goofs

When Kay and Andy are at the pool, and the camera changes back and forth from one to the other, our view of Kay keeps changing from applying suntan lotion to just lying there.

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Connections

Remake of Inferno (1953)

User Reviews

You can survive,,,,you can make it....

This noteworthy film stars Arthur Hill as a worthy and initially shallow businessman. His wife, well-portrayed by the memorable Diana Muldaur, schemes to rid herself of him, and her lover conspires with her, (As portrayed by James Stacy, as her slick opportunist lover).

Hill finds himself abandoned in the scorching, unforgiving desert, and at first is tempted to give up. There is a suspenseful soundtrack and he gradually learns to fight back, despite a broken leg, dehydration, and no rescue in sight.

Muldaur meanwhile enjoys the spoils of what she thinks is his eventual demise. She and her lover celebrate the fact that his tracks have been covered by rain, he is most likely dead. There are some nice shots of her 1970's style mansion, kaleidoscopic colors from that era, and set decoration.

They visit the desert to ensure that Hill has died, there is a suspenseful twist at the end, and you will truly enjoy this film. There was an earlier film starring Robert Ryan and Rhonda Fleming (circa 1950's) which I believe was a similar theme. Recommended. 8/10.