Killjoy (TV movie 1981)
8 out of 10 stars Time to Read: 1:47 min
BASIC PLOT:
Joy Morgan has gone missing. Is she dead? Did she go on a trip? Who knows the truth? Is it Dr. Paul Trenton (
John Rubinstein), who has a key to her house? Could it be Dr. Martha Trenton (
Nancy Marchand), Paul's obsessive mother, who will do anything to control his life? Is it Laury Medford (
Kim Basinger), who's new fiancé, Dr. Max Heller (
Stephen Macht) might have had an affair with Joy? Could it even be Rosie, the bartender at 'Post-op', the local doctor's bar? Rosie seems a bit too interested in the goings on at the hospital, and in the doctor's lives. Or finally, could it be
Lou Corbin (
Robert Culp), the strange man who seems obsessed with Joy, and who continuously shows up where he's not wanted?
WHAT WORKS:
*SOAP OPERA-Y BUT IN A GOOD WAY The name of the hospital they all work in is 'City General Hospital', and of course the bar they all frequent, 'Post-Op', has a bartender, Rosie (very well played by
Ann Wedgeworth) who's addicted to a soap very much like "General Hospital". The plotlines are soap opera-esque, but in an engaging, entertaining way, not in a ridiculous, oh brother way.
*THE ACTING IS WAY ABOVE AVERAGE
For a TV movie, this is stellar. I know in 1981, we took our jobs more seriously, and greed hadn't yet taken over the entertainment industry completely, but even with all that said, it's still a cut above the norm for that era.
*PERFECTLY CAST
Kim Basinger and
John Rubinstein are perfectly cast as Laury Medford and Dr. Paul Trenton, the rich, spoiled kids, grown into entitled adults.
Stephen Macht is excellent as Dr. Max Heller, a doctor who put himself through med school, working on the docks. He looks more like a boxer, than a doctor. The actors are all visual metaphors to their characters, and it really works.
*GOOD HIDDEN VISUAL CLUES If you look, there are visual clues that tell the story. I can't say more without it being a spoiler, but keep your eyes open for the little things. This movie makes good use of them.
*LOTS OF SUSPECTS, NO ANSWERS Literally everybody could be a suspect, even the ancillary characters, and that's a good thing. I also did not know who the killer was until the reveal, and I usually have these types of movies figured out in the first twenty minutes. Excellent.
*VERY WELL SHOT The setups and blocking are very well done. It's a "Joy" to watch.
*COOL CARS There are some awesome cars in this movie - a 'Vette and a Ferrari.
*KIM BASINGER goes braless throughout the whole movie, enough said.
WHAT DOESN'T WORK:
*I TRIED HARD TO THINK OF SOMETHING, BUT EVERYTHING WORKS
TO RECOMMEND, OR NOT TO RECOMMEND, THAT IS THE QUESTION:
*I would definitely recommend this movie to mystery fans. It's a mix of an old school Agatha Christie, (with
Robert Culp playing Poirot) and a good night time soap's cliffhanger. Either way, a highly enjoyable ride.
CLOSING NOTES:
*THIS IS A MADE-FOR-TV MOVIE, please keep that in mind before you watch/rate it. TV movies have a much lower budget, and so your expectations should be adjusted.
*I HAVE NO CONNECTION TO THE FILM, or production in ANY way. This review was NOT written in full, or in part, by a bot. I am just an honest viewer, who wishes for more straight forward reviews (less trolls and fanboys), and better entertainment. Hope I helped you out.
