No Way to Treat a Lady [1968)] Rod Steiger

http://bayimg.com/pAKKBAAdH

No Way to Treat a Lady (1968)


http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0063356/

No Way to Treat a Lady (1968) is a darkly comic thriller directed by Jack Smight, with a screenplay by John Gay adapted from William Goldman's novel of the same name. The film starred Rod Steiger, Lee Remick and George Segal; Segal was nominated for a BAFTA for his role as Detective Moe Brummel.

Rod Steiger ... Christopher Gill
Lee Remick ... Kate Palmer
George Segal ... Morris Brummel
Eileen Heckart ... Mrs. Brummel
Murray Hamilton ... Inspector Haines
Michael Dunn ... Mr. Kupperman
Martine Bartlett ... Alma Mulloy
Barbara Baxley ... Belle Poppie
Irene Dailey ... Mrs. Fitts
Doris Roberts ... Sylvia Poppie
Ruth White ... Mrs. Himmel
Val Bisoglio ... Detective Monaghan
David Doyle ... Lieutenant Dawson
Kim August ... Sadie

A forgotten gem from the late-1960s, No Way to Treat a Lady has aged surprisingly well and may contain Rod SteigerΓΓé¼Γäós best performance ΓΓé¼ΓÇ£ certainly his best unknown performance. The cast is exceptional and William GoldmanΓΓé¼Γäós screenplay based on his novel is fascinating. This movie immediately followed SteigerΓΓé¼Γäós Academy Award winning performance in In the Heat of the Night and for some reason has become lost in the annals of time. The film contains very little of those annoying 1960s filmmaking techniques that characterized the era. Instead, like In the Heat of the Night, it stands up very well and ΓΓé¼ΓÇ£ decades later ΓΓé¼ΓÇ£ the black humour and suspense are still entertaining, funny and thrilling.

After the success of Alfred Hitchcock's groundbreaking Psycho, it seemed commonplace in film narrative to link horror with 'human' monsters; ones no different than you or I. What also happened, in the years to follow, was a subverted link between the psychopath and family values, particularly towards the mother. Movies like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Mother's Day, Scream 2, Dressed to Kill and practically all of the Friday the 13th films owe more than a tip of the hat to Psycho for introducing a deranged respect for the family. Eight years after releasing Psycho, Paramount okayed a novel by a then unknown William Goldman (The Stepford Wives, Misery), which eventually materialized into the film: No Way To Treat A Lady. The movie is indebted to Psycho, but on its own it is still an excellent cinematic work.

No Way To Treat A Lady is an excellent thriller that still holds up well today. For a 60's film this is extremely fast paced, building layers of suspense throughout its runtime. The editing intercuts perfectly between Steiger's murders and Segal's hunt for justice, making for a very satisfying game of cat and mouse. There is also some wonderfully staged comic relief between Segal and his overly Jewish mother. While many 60's films today seem largely overwrought and anticlimactic, Lady is a glowing exception. In his lengthy career, writer William Goldman has proven his ability to present intriguing and profound characters amidst timeless stories (his Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and The Princess Bride screenplays have been unanimously praised by all generations). Goldman's story is every bit as fresh today as it was 35 years ago, which is a claim few writers can make of their past work.

Goldman's script, however great it is, could have largely been negated if it weren't for the great performances by all the leads. A very young George Segal presents a detective that is nicely different than the traditionally hardnosed and masculine detectives that encompass cinema today. His character is shy but intelligent; his mother berates him constantly and as a result he lacks charm and is awkward around the ladies. Lee Remick (The Omen) plays a character that, like Segal's, subverts the modern conventions of traditional characters. Unlike most love interests, she dominates the relationship (rather than the man doing so) and she is full of wit and strength.

The best performance though, is undoubtedly Steiger's multi-tiered tour de force as the psychotic killer. He presents a killer with a troubled past and a panache for characterization. All of Gill's characters in the film: the plumber, the priest, the cop, and even the elderly lady are all very thought out and convincing. Like all great screen villains he presents a killer with true motives and meticulous planning skills; a true threat to the viewer and the characters alike. He is imbalanced and deranged, but almost always composed, and his confidence makes him all the more imposing. His wonderfully done swan song at the end of the film gives credibility to his various characters, making them more than just a gimmick.

With the counter effects of Vietnam beginning to surface in culture, it is interesting to notice the shift from the supernatural "other" of the old Universal Monster films to a more humanistic monster. Like Norman Bates, Steiger's character is a mild mannered male, one whom you see everyday on the street. The 60's represented a time of a changing villain, from monster to human; a transition that would become fully realized in the 70's with movies like The Last House on the Left, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Halloween.

With Halloween right around the corner, this may be the perfect film for you fans of older, more suspenseful cinema. Steiger's character presents enough personalities in the film to put even Dana Carvey to shame; and with Halloween being all about facades and dress-up, how can you go wrong with No Way To Treat A Lady? It is suspenseful without ever showing a drop of blood, like many great films of the past, and the fact that it is still effective today is a testament to its quality.