Pretty Poison

Pretty Poison (1968)

Runtime: 89 minutes

Directed by: Noel Black

Starring: Anthony Perkins, Tuesday Weld, Beverly Garland, John Randolph, Dick O’Neill

From: 20^th Century Fox

One feeling I occasionally have is not remembering how I came across a movie then decided to much later check it out. I think Pretty Poison was because it was mentioned on an episode of Pure Cinema Podcast but I may be wrong. In any case, you can find this on YouTube* … albeit in SD form and the first 30 seconds is missing. It’s in HD on the legal streaming sites anyhow, which was how I experienced the film; it was interesting how after the 20th Century Fox logo it IMMEDIATELY cuts to what looks like the middle of a scene involving Anthony Perkins. Yes, that was the actual edit of the film. Anyhow, the basic premise and the two stars intrigued.

Perkins plays someone in an institution who is let out then is allowed to manage the Bates Motel again… actually, that character is different from Norman Bates but still did something heinous-which is revealed and naturally, someone is believed “cured” so they are released from being locked up and of course they are still mentally ill. In this case, Dennis Pitt has “fantasies” which he gets lost in & after he meets Tuesday Weld, he swoons over her and develops the delusion that he’s a CIA agent who needs her assistance. That is a YIKES as her character is an “almost 18 year old” in high school, which is the intended reaction.

You see, this is actually a darkly comic thriller, as in pretty dark. It’s not a gross insensitive sort of motion picture, even with the presence of several murders. The first half of the movie is Perkins snowing Weld with his wild story of being a secret agent, and her falling for it. Things then take a turn (the title Pretty Poison started to make sense)… I won’t reveal more except to say that both the leads were quality in their roles-even if Weld hated it due to problems w/ director Noel Black and how this allegedly wasn’t the smoothest of shoots. This has the presence of several “that guy” actors you’d probably recognize if you’ve seen enough old movies (John Randolph, Dick O’Neill, Ken Kercheval) and they are all fine in their roles but Beverly Garland was rather memorable in the few scenes she appeared in.

Certain elements of this movie feel more in like with modern filmmaking rather than what was the norm in ’68; Lord only knows what 20th Century Fox thought of the finished product at the time. Thankfully you don’t need to dig hard to track this oddity down where things escalate and it becomes a wild tale in the bucolic setting of rural Massachusetts.

• I need to start watching more of the movies I have in several lists on YouTube.