Cul-De-Sac (1966)

Cul-De-Sac (NR) - Review

"No Outlet"

Two wounded hoodlums stumble upon an ancient English castle and decide to hold up until help arrives.  Unfortunately for them it is owned by a retired businessman and his new French wife, and their strange relationship is the doomed keystone to this psychological thriller from then relative newcomer Roman Polanski (China Town).

Moody yet humorous, Cul-De-Sac places its characters in a dead end and reports on their actions (much like Polanski's earlier film Knife In The Water, the exception is the bursts of humor).  This time what characters they are, providing incredulous laughs and demented mannerisms.  The American hoodlum, Dickie, is played by former blacklisted character actor Lionel Stander (the voice of Kup from the animated Transformers movie, if you can believe it).  Donald Pleasance (Halloween) is his eye-popping bald self as George the husband and his emasculatingly playful wife Teresa is played by Francoise Dorleac.  Even the location is quite a character, a small medieval fortress perched on a hill that is sometimes isolated by the sea (depending on the tricky tides).  Dickie is a gruff charmer, immune to and sickened by the impropriety displayed by George's wife, whose promiscuous and precocious nature drives George to obvious neurosis. It's the kind of movie whose pleasurable details are in the quick glances and body language, the acting is the voice of the script, and this uniquely European exercise in tension is an early example of Polanski's deft touch.

7 Albie Needs A Drink out of 10 (GOOD)