Murder in Peyton Place (1977)

A former resident of the town of Peyton Place, now wealthy and powerful, secretly returns to the town and sets in motion a spate of killings designed as revenge for past wrongs.

Directors:

Bruce Kessler, Robert Hartford-Davis (uncredited)

Writers:

Richard De Roy (as Richard DeRoy), Grace Metalious (novel)

Stars:

Dorothy Malone, Ed Nelson, Tim O'Connor

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dorothy Malone	...	Constance MacKenzie
Ed Nelson	...	Dr. Michael Rossi
Tim O'Connor	...	Elliot Carson
Joyce Jillson	...	Jill Harrington
Christopher Connelly	...	Norman Harrington
Mia Farrow	...	Allison MacKenzie (archive footage)
Janet Margolin	...	Betty Anderson Roerick
Marj Dusay	...	Ellen Considine
James Booth	...	Tommy Crimpton
David Hedison	...	Steven Cord
Stella Stevens	...	Stella Chernak
Jonathan Goldsmith	...	Stan Haley
Charlotte Stewart	...	Denise Haley
Kaz Garas	...	Springer
Kimberly Beck	...	Bonnie Buehler

Storyline

Made for television movie that features some of the characters from the long running television series. In it Allison Mackenzie and Rodney Harrington go back to Peyton Place, and before they make contact with anyone, they are killed in a car accident. Now their relatives are told that Rodney was drunk but his brother Norman doesn't believe that, so he tries to find out what happened. And unknown to anyone, Stella Churnak has returned and is out to wreak havoc on Peyton Place.

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Plot Keywords:

fall from height | penthouse | dog | pay phone | courtroom | 

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

3 October 1977 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Peter Katz Productions,20th Century Fox Television

Technical Specs

Runtime:

100 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Photophone Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Color by Deluxe)

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The original director, Robert Hartford-Davis, died after three days of filming.

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Quotes

Stella Chernak: I intend to destroy Peyton Place.

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Crazy Credits

"And as she appeared in her original role Mia Farrow" The actress is listed in the opening credits. Her performance consisted of archive footage from the "Peyton Place" television series.

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Connections

Follows Return to Peyton Place (1961)

User Reviews

Melodramatic Soap Opera

However unrealistic, the premise of this murder melodrama provides an interesting twist on the motive of revenge. The film is not a whodunit. We know early on who the villain is. Instead, the plot follows multiple, and I do mean multiple, characters and subplots in a small American town.

The viewer almost needs some kind of cheat sheet to keep track of all the people, and how they are connected to each other. Forget deep characterization. They're all just stick figures in service to the story's premise.

The script is talky and highly melodramatic. Most scenes take place indoors, on sets. As a result, many of the scenes mimic then-current television soap operas. Of course, that's basically what the original "Peyton Place" was, at least that is my understanding. Dialogue in "Murder in Payton Place" is generally dry and hackneyed, again reminiscent of daytime soap operas.

Casting is okay. But acting seems stilted and over-rehearsed. Photography is about what one would expect for a typical made-for-TV movie. Background music is highly manipulative.

Despite the poor script, the cheesy sets, and melodramatic acting, the premise and mystery element held my attention, barely, given my added patience and my failure to find any other film available for watching at the time.