ridiculous rating

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

.Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

There are only a few movies I watch more than once, this one is on my list because of Geraldine Chaplin's psychotic performance as Emily. Here is an actor in top form, playing the role for all it's worth, and she is a joy to watch. Anthony Perkins's unstructured acting style serves to emphasize Chaplin's, while Jeff Goldblum and Alfre Woodard (does she ever age?) provide dramatic background characters. I'm less sold on Berry Berenson, who seems out of her depth here, but her tangible fear when Emily pops up in her house is serviceable.Okay, so about that ending, it's almost like they ran out of money and just called it a day, leaving an unfinished story. It's frustrating, but hear me out: this is how it feels when someone close walks out of your life, this is exactly what Emily experienced when Neil dumped her, and she wanted him to feel that way. I know it's a stretch and probably not intentional, but it's the only explanation that makes sense.

Geraldine Chaplin's portrayal of a mentally ill ( or just borderline personality disorder? ) woman is so spot-on, it is painful to watch at moments- really raw vulnerability. I had to watch it twice to pay attention to the other characters' performances. The ending is so perfect I had to laugh. The plotting and finesse of this film is so far above the typical ex-lover revenge movie I don't want to put it in that category. This is a psychological thriller that deserves more attention; maybe today's filmmakers would learn something.

A woman is released from prison and then starts stalking a man. But why?Starring Anthony Perkins and Geraldine Chaplin.Written and directed by Alan Rudolph.This movie has such a promising premise but ultimately it's a frustrating watch.It did keep my interest and I was fascinated all the way through to know what was going on and why this strange woman was stalking the main protagonist and his wife. The stand out performance was by Geraldine Chaplin, she played a great part. Unfortunately Perkins was quite wooden and I wanted to poke his screen wife (Berry Berenson) with a very long stick to see if she was still alive. The ending was frustrating. I was hoping that all the loose ends would be tied up or we would at least get a decent twist, but I was left with more questions than answers. I usually don't mind open endings, but this one left me feeling short changed. What the heck actually happened at the end? What the heck happened in their relationship before she was locked up in prison?Too many unanswered questions and I really can't be bothered surfing any movie related message boards to find out. I'll move on to the next old movie.7/10

From the comments I've read here, I don't think the reviewers saw the version I did, and I can say that now since I've viewed a video of the film. The ending of the film in my version (and I suspect theirs) was nothing like what I saw on the screen and blew the entire integrity of a film that built its suspense and imagery bit by bit to lead up to a shocking conclusion. All of the things Emily asked for in her apartment are tools of her revenge on her ex-husband, but you'd never know it. It looks like she just beds him and leaves him. She does way more than that. SPOILER She chains him to the bed and abandons him. No one will know where he is or come to his rescue. He might find a way out, but it's not a sure thing. END SPOILERAnd tht git who didn't like the Alberta Hunter soundtrack--the words of the songs tell the story of the film beautifully--must be deaf. It's an amazingly beautiful soundtrack.