When the recent remake of "Rebecca" came out and caused an interest in the original to surge, I thought that no matter how lousy the remake was, at least it has succeeded somewhat. Hitchcock even remade one of his own films, so he wasn't opposed, and while a few of his other films did result in flop remakes, this TV version of the 1943 classic (somewhat obscure compared to other films of his) is surprisingly good. There's an intro to the story that creates mystery with Tippi Hedren as a beautiful wealthy matron who is seemingly the merry widow who becomes the apparent victim of the charming Mark Harmon who may be a psychopathic killer.
Taking on the role originated by Teresa Wright, Margaret Welsh is good but lacks the screen presence to have risen above ingenue roles like this, but you can't help but root for her because her wise eyed innocence has her the perfect heroine for this type of thriller. As her mother, Diane Ladd seems to be emulating an older Una Merkel as Harmon's older sister, much older sister, and William Lanteau is very good as her husband, reminding me of Henry Travers from the original movie. Shirley Knight, as a vulnerable wealthy widow from the town Harmon hides out in, is also quite memorable, reminding me of Norma Varden in "Strangers From a Train", setting up the potential for tragedy in the quaint community that has probably never seen a squashed bug on the sidewalk, let alone a murder.
But it is Mark Harmon who is mesmerizing to watch here, obviously sinister even though it is only initially presumed that he's got a hideous secret. He reminds me of Montgomery Clift here in "A Place in the Sun". Yep, he goes off on tirades over the playing of the Merry Widow Waltz and deliberately destroyed a newspaper, getting quite angry at Welsh who indicates that she knows he's hiding something. A lot of people will say that this was an unnecessary remake, but it is filmed in a way that makes it immediately fascinating because it looks like one of Hitchcock's 1950's Technicolor thrillers done in Vistavision, so that gives this a classic film look as well. Hedren is heartbreaking in her cameo, setting up the mystery which just gets more dangerous and intense as the film goes on.
Taking on the role originated by Teresa Wright, Margaret Welsh is good but lacks the screen presence to have risen above ingenue roles like this, but you can't help but root for her because her wise eyed innocence has her the perfect heroine for this type of thriller. As her mother, Diane Ladd seems to be emulating an older Una Merkel as Harmon's older sister, much older sister, and William Lanteau is very good as her husband, reminding me of Henry Travers from the original movie. Shirley Knight, as a vulnerable wealthy widow from the town Harmon hides out in, is also quite memorable, reminding me of Norma Varden in "Strangers From a Train", setting up the potential for tragedy in the quaint community that has probably never seen a squashed bug on the sidewalk, let alone a murder.
But it is Mark Harmon who is mesmerizing to watch here, obviously sinister even though it is only initially presumed that he's got a hideous secret. He reminds me of Montgomery Clift here in "A Place in the Sun". Yep, he goes off on tirades over the playing of the Merry Widow Waltz and deliberately destroyed a newspaper, getting quite angry at Welsh who indicates that she knows he's hiding something. A lot of people will say that this was an unnecessary remake, but it is filmed in a way that makes it immediately fascinating because it looks like one of Hitchcock's 1950's Technicolor thrillers done in Vistavision, so that gives this a classic film look as well. Hedren is heartbreaking in her cameo, setting up the mystery which just gets more dangerous and intense as the film goes on.