The luridly titled Nightmare Honeymoon is a cut above the typical "made for TV" (type of drama. Newlyweds, Jill and David, take a wrong turn and run into sadistic killers, on their way to their honeymoon in New Orleans.
What might have been just another predictable story of action and violence is instead a more interesting exploration into the couple's grappling with the aftermath of their emotions. Dack Rambo, as David, and Rebecca Dianna Smith, as Jill, give insightful performances dealing with the tensions of the need for protection and revenge.
(Possible spoiler follows.)
After surviving being caught and beaten when they accidentally witness a criminal execution, the couple seem barely surprised when the local sheriff seems hardly interested. Their subsequent decision to proceed on to New Orleans, instead of immediately returning to Jill's nearby, next state home and the love and support of her father and large clan family with roots of over 100 years in the area, seems a bit implausible at first. Then, one must remember the film, released in 1973, was during a time when rape victims often feared the shame and humiliation almost as much as the rapists.
In spite of saying they cannot pretend the rape did not happen, they proceed to New Orleans checking into their honeymoon suite. The visual beauty and sumptuousness of the honeymoon suite (David says, "I didn't know there were still places like this.,) can barely be taken in, let alone enjoyed, given the shock of their experience.
Realizing they cannot go forward with their lives, and choosing not to go back to involve her father, the recently returned Vietnam Veteran, David, decides that he is going to find the killers.
Production values are definitely a cut above. The scenes in New Orleans bring nostalgia for the "Grand Lady."
The film is filled with a great cast of well seasoned character actors and the strong experience of the cast is evident. I'm not sure why the credits list the female lead of Rebecca Dianna Smith last, under "other cast"! Especially given her accurate, thoughtful performance.
What might have been just another predictable story of action and violence is instead a more interesting exploration into the couple's grappling with the aftermath of their emotions. Dack Rambo, as David, and Rebecca Dianna Smith, as Jill, give insightful performances dealing with the tensions of the need for protection and revenge.
(Possible spoiler follows.)
After surviving being caught and beaten when they accidentally witness a criminal execution, the couple seem barely surprised when the local sheriff seems hardly interested. Their subsequent decision to proceed on to New Orleans, instead of immediately returning to Jill's nearby, next state home and the love and support of her father and large clan family with roots of over 100 years in the area, seems a bit implausible at first. Then, one must remember the film, released in 1973, was during a time when rape victims often feared the shame and humiliation almost as much as the rapists.
In spite of saying they cannot pretend the rape did not happen, they proceed to New Orleans checking into their honeymoon suite. The visual beauty and sumptuousness of the honeymoon suite (David says, "I didn't know there were still places like this.,) can barely be taken in, let alone enjoyed, given the shock of their experience.
Realizing they cannot go forward with their lives, and choosing not to go back to involve her father, the recently returned Vietnam Veteran, David, decides that he is going to find the killers.
Production values are definitely a cut above. The scenes in New Orleans bring nostalgia for the "Grand Lady."
The film is filled with a great cast of well seasoned character actors and the strong experience of the cast is evident. I'm not sure why the credits list the female lead of Rebecca Dianna Smith last, under "other cast"! Especially given her accurate, thoughtful performance.