Sunday 9 September 2012

DOUBLE EXPOSURE



DOUBLE EXPOSURE (1983)

Dir. William Byron Hillman
Written by. William Byron Hillman




a.k.a. 
A Doppoa Esposizione--Italy
Declicus--France
Drugie Ujecie--Poland
La Doble Imagen del Crimen--Spain
Model Killer--Philippines
Murhaajan Muotokuva--Finland
O Homem de Duas Caras--Portugal
Psycho-Killer--West Germany

A
 Review
by
JUSTIN HUGH DICKINSON



Michael Callan plays Adrian Wilde, a photographer of models for men's magazines. He's is continually plagued by dreams of the girls that he has just film and the next day they turn up dead. His brother B.J. Wilde (James Stacy) has some anger issues and has recently left his family. Seymour Cassel plays Michael psychologist to whom he tells these coincindences to. These scenes are where Callan really overacts. 
Despite the good cast and decent if sometimes melodramatic acting, this so called psycho/slasher has an insulting cheat of an ending when you discover who has been doing the killing. Some of the characters' traits go up and down; this way and that. The fault is most likely on the script. The production has the feel of a made for tv movie except when delving into the the sleazy sheen of the back alleys, prostitutes, and the mud wrestling scene with the one armed and legged James Stacy rolling around in the pit with Kathy Shower. 
This film is not bloody for a slasher film. It plays more like a police procedural at times than a real psycho-thriller, with Cleavon Little (who deserved better parts) in a throwaway role as police chief in charge of the case and Pamela Hensley as Sgt. Fontain. The relationship between the two brothers Adrian and B.J. (James Stacy, who really did lose an arm and leg from a motorcycle accident in real life) has a few nice scenes. Joanna Petit as Michael's new girlfriend, Mindy Jordache, is fine as usual (but deserves better). 
 Even as a suspense film it doesn't  work, because there really isn't any. Everything is telegraphed. It seems as if the director wanted to make a drama between two brothers and threw in a shoddy "whodunit". The thing about how they "cheat" the ending (which I won't give away) is that they could have fixed it so easily. It wouldn't have fixed the movie, but you would not have felt had. It's just lazy. Also appearing are: Robert Tessier, Misty Rowe, and Frances Bay. If you must see this, pick it up in one of those 50 movie packs from Mill Creek. 
Honestly, the poster is the best thing about it.


No comments:

Post a Comment