You'll Never See Me Again (1973 TV Movie) User Reviews

suspenseful TV movie

[myriamlenys · 7/10 · 18 August 2019]

A couple of newlyweds has just spent a deliriously happy honeymoon. Still, their relationship doesn't seem all that perfect, since a quarrel devolves into a serious fight. Angrily, the wife leaves the house, warning her husband that he'll never see her again. And disappear she does...

Quite a suspenseful movie, on a classical theme : an innocent man gets unjustly accused and needs to outwit both the police and the person(s) responsible for kidnapping or killing his wife. The plot is good, the paranoia can be cut with a knife, and there are quite a lot of satisfying twists and red herrings.

Still, one wonders about the quality of this new marriage. Over the years I have learned to recognize troublesome marriages and this one certainly qualifies : it's one of these non-unions, marked by a lack of reasonable communication, where both partners spend their time either cooing like pigeons or else fighting and screaming like pirates out of their heads on rum. In my experience this kind of marriage soon gathers a number of other partners, such as a lawyer or a doctor...

Hartman in a TV movie? Go figure.

[cowboypsychic1 · 5/10 · 22 December 2005]

Adapted from a pulp novel by Cornell Woolrich, YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME AGAIN features a rare performance by David Hartman, best known as a long running host of GOOD MORNING America. Truthfully, Hartman's calling as an on-screen talent was probably better suited to host rather than actor; here, he comes across as sort of a poor man's Jimmy Stewart, and never really seems comfortable on screen (though he does seem rather creepy when his character gets angry). Jess Walton is certainly lovely to look at, even if her performance seems a bit wooden (but that could also be due to the rather skimpy lines she's been given to read). One or two twists in this adaptation are Woolrich-worthy, but on the whole, it's probably a bit predictable for a modern audience, and ultimately rates as standard fare for an early 70s TV movie...even with direction by Jeannot Szwarc (a veteran of TV and feature films). All that being said, I'm still glad to have this one in my collection.

"A Candy Bar Is One Of The Best Things In Life!"...

[azathothpwiggins · 17 August 2022]

Newlyweds, Ned and Vicki Bliss (David Hartman and Jess Walton) have an idyllic marriage. They're the sort of couple that either makes us envious, or sick to our stomachs. Trouble brews in paradise when Vicki grows concerned about her ailing mother (Jane Wyatt). The idea of an unexpected trip to mum's house causes turmoil between the two lovebirds, resulting in a physical altercation.

Vicki storms off alone to see her mother, uttering the words of the title as she leaves. Ned's anger subsides, replaced by worry and growing dread when Vicki's words appear to have been prophetic.

YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME AGAIN is one of the best, most suspenseful made-for-TV thrillers ever produced. Hartman is superb as the everyman thrust into the unknown. His odyssey is the core of the movie, as he's driven ever deeper into the mystery of Vicki's disappearance. There are some nice twists and turns as Ned's life unravels, and his desperation increases.

The final twist is a jaw-dropper, leading to a very satisfying denouement.

EXTRA CREDIT FOR: Bo Svenson as Sam, the world's tallest, most surly behemoth / gas station attendant! No kidding, this guy is built like a cast iron furnace!...

Way too many logical lapses to make this film work...even if the ending is mega-cool.

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 25 October 2016]

When the film begins, Ned (David Hartman) and Vicki (Jess Walton) are incredibly in love--so much so that it's like a Hallmark commercial. Because they are so in love, it makes what happens next almost impossible to believe. After receiving a letter from her mother, Vicki deliberately picks a fight with her husband and they start violently arguing. Then, in a shocking development, he slaps her!! She stomps off--vowing never to return. The intensity of this altercation, especially in light of the beginning of the film, sure left me scratching my head!!

Soon, Ned begins to worry about his wife...and this is very normal and to be expected. When she hasn't returned after a day, he goes to the police...again...normal and expected. But what takes place in the second part of the film is just insane. Out of the blue, the police try to arrest him (though they have no real evidence he committed any crime) and what does he do? Yep, he attacks the police detective and then steals a car and sets out to find his missing wife!!! On what bizarro world does this make any sense?! It completely ruined the movie as Ned just seemed nuts....and didn't fit in with the rest of the film. Too bad the ending was actually really good...as by then I was irritated that the script was so sloppy and convoluted. After seeing this, I could see why soon after this Hartman quit acting and went on to become the host for NBC's "Today Show"...a job he kept for many years.

What Really Happened To Vicki?

[Rainey-Dawn · 8/10 · 22 January 2017]

Ned Bliss is an architect and Vicki is his wife. They are happy but one day Vicki gets a call from her mom but they argue a bit, they hang up. Vicki decides to go to see her mom. The next thing you know both are at each other's throats. He's got his routine, his work. Vicki wants to see her mom. He decides to go with her but Vicki keeps at him, he grabs her hands to calm her down, she bites his hand then he slapped her hard enough to make her nose bleed. She leaves him with "you'll never see me again". He noticed that she left her clutch purse on the coffee table with money left in it. He waits for her to call or show up but nothing, tries calling her but her mother but she says Vicki is not there. He calls their friends - no Vicki. He tries hotels - no Vicki. He goes to the bus station, show the man her photo and he say yea he remembers her but see never did buy the ticket, she seemed to not have enough money then I saw her lingering outside looking as if she was going to hitch a ride. The police can't help because it hasn't been 48 hours, unless they have a reason to suspect foul play. Ned tells the police it might be foul play involved. The police think find her in the hospital - but it's not Vicki. From that point on it looks more and more like Ned murdered his own wife. But Ned drives up to see Vicki's parents and things get stranger, more suspenseful. What happened to Vicki? Pretty darn good mystery movie. Very suspenseful - surprisingly.

8/10

He's dull and she's a child, so it would never work regardless of how they plotted it.

[mark.waltz · 2/10 · 3 December 2023]

The first few scenes of a movie or TV show are supposed to make you care about the characters, and 15 minutes into it, I cringed over spending another hour trying to care about either one. Jess Walton certainly is the young and the restless here, unaware that 14 years later, she'd be taking over the leading role of Jill Foster on that soap opera that premiered the year this first aired as a movie of the week. Her character is newly married to architect David Hartman, and after a beautiful picnic, they're all of a sudden fighting.

Violence begats violence, and her biting him results in a slap. She's supposed to get sympathy at this point, but I had none as her harpy like insults towards her husband could break any man's spirit. But he's no prize either, and after she storms out to run home to mother (whom she's estranged from), he begins to feel guilty. Jane Wyatt as her hypochondriac mother indicates that she never arrived (and was unaware that she was coming), and the disappearance of his wife leads to the speculation that something violent had occurred.

A really poor script is the fault of this film, and it is a shame that the characters were just shoved in the viewer's face without moments to care about them. Walton shows spark, that's for sure, but she has absolutely no chemistry with Hartman. He seems more like a purvy uncle than someone who'd win the love of a young woman. The supporting characters aren't very likeable either, so the film is extremely difficult to get through. Easy to see why this has been forgotten with the desire to see it again an absolute zilch.

THIS MOVIE IS THE BEST TV MYSTERY TO COME OUT OF THE 70's

[Bill837 · 10/10 · 21 June 1999]

This couple had just married (David Hartman and Jessica Jones) and they had an argument and her husband hit her so she slammed the front door and said...... "YOU'LL NEVER SEE ME AGAIN". He just tapped her a little but it hurt her deeply so she left and then things started happening. He went to the police to report her missing and they came out and found blood on her coat, that she left in there car where she had slept that night. The cops thought he killed her but she went back to her mothers home. He was climbing the wall looking for her and her mother said she hadn't seen her but it wasn't her real mother, she had died and being a builder he noticed the room off center...

I would like to see this and other good MOVIES available on video.

I Wouldn't Blame Her

[JasonDanielBaker · 12 January 2012]

Dorky drip of a sasquatch Ned Bliss (Hartman) designs grotesque modern architecture for a living. He has a beautiful young wife (Walton) and everything seems like it is going his way up until she wants to visit her parents and he says he can't go.

The argument they have deteriorates and he ends up hitting her. She leaves without him, tells him he will never see her again and he waits for her to come back but she doesn't.

There is real suspense here. Any woman married to a schlub like this guy is always a threat to split...I mean look at him! The host of Good Morning America?! Yikes! Of course it turns out there is a lot more to it and things with her parents are not at all what they appear to be.

Shows How A Simple Story Can Still Ratchet Up The Suspense

[bacchus9 · 9/10 · 2 December 2012]

A real delight, for the often ugly early 70's decor, the cheesy stereotypes, and the unexpectedly good job done by David Hartman. It is a simple premise, with a few holes. But as the tension and suspense escalate, we see his desperation and worry build nicely. The wife, who is high maintenance, and dumb, is adequate, and by the resolution has the sharp edges knocked off her. Likewise the husband has his very typical bullheadedness beaten out of him, as he really discovers the truth, and his deep love for his new, and highly strung wife. Direction above average, and economic, and very good by the TV movie standards of the decade.