Have either one of you ever seen the Frank Sinatra movie called the Manchurian Candidate? I was so reminded of Angela Landsbury’s (yes the chick from Murder She Wrote, I know) character, another psychotic and very overpowering mother, when I watched this movie. So much so that I had to take a double take during the first bedroom scene (where they are covering up the window) just to make sure that it wasn’t the same character. Just a tad bit psycho, not very attractive, high on her own abilities and smothering like no other.

But I digress, on to the review. It is very rarely that I did what I did with Séance. I usually read about a movie, watch the trailer, or ask others about a movie before I watch it so I know what to expect, but I didn’t do that with this one. In fact, I knew absolutely nothing about it – none of the actors, no story, not even a timeframe of when it was produced. So is it any wonder that I was more than pleasantly surprised. Other than a few problems I had with the story, I thought it was a very well done movie.

I loved Richard Attenborough in this film. I have seen him in quite a few others (The Great Escape, Jurassic Park, Elizabeth) and I have enjoyed his directed works (A Bridge to Far, Gandhi, Cry Freedom) but I think this might be his best performance. I think one of my new favorite movie scenes of all time is where he finally snaps on his wife and tells her what he really thinks of her medium abilities. The fire in his eyes was so real I was just mesmerized by his performance. A fantastic 2 minutes of shear acting talent!

I have not seen Myra Savage in anything else, but I would not be opposed to seeing other films that she is in. Granted, she is not one of the more attractive actresses out there but she acts pretty well. At times her character was a little over the top, especially during the séance scenes. The acting is a solid A and an A+ for Sir Richard.

I mentioned that I had some problems with the story. Actually it was 3 specific problems. The first being the actual kidnapping, or rather how the crime was committed. Is it just me, or did anybody else think that the cops should have solved the crime that same day? The chauffer could identify Attenborough cold, the car was not that well hidden, and the wife visited the family and discussed personal things about the child. You don’t have to be Colombo to figure this one out. For crying out loud, the police even paid them a visit, but left after nobody answered the door. Solid police work there Chief Wigham! Could you imagine the police doing that in real life, I don’t think so!

The second problem I had was the fuzzy alluding to of the dead son. I think Richard was his name. The story tries to keep it fuzzy for the first half of the movie that the spirit Myra is talking to his her stillborn child. I think it was a half ass job of keeping the identity of Richard a mystery. They should have dropped the mystery altogether.

The final problem I had with Séance was the delivery of the Ransom. However, I was reminded of Gene Hackman’s very excellent The French Connection throughout the entire scene by the way. I had to rewind it at least 3 times to try and clarify the subway scene and I am still a little frustrated by how it happened. Maybe I need to use the London underground to understand how it all played out, but I do not know how the detective that was tailing Mr. Clayton had to fight human traffic in order to follow Attenborough. Just not a very tight scene in my eyes. I really enjoyed the story despite these problems, but I think that is because of the direction of Bryan Forbes. I give the story a B -.

The only other movie of Bryan Forbes that I have seen is The Guns of Navarone and I loved that one. As far as similarities between the two, I see very little except for the specific attention to detail. In both films the direction is so perfect that every little detail is taken care of. Take the opening shot of the house just after the first séance scene for example, the camera is splattered by raindrops. Or how Attenborough buys oranges at a market for two reasons: one to make him look fatter during the ransom delivery because they are in his pockets and 2, so he can use the bag to carry the money in afterwards. Brilliant, just brilliant details! The upside-down shot of the Savage’s house in the puddle at both the beginning and the end of the film is a great circular touch tying it in with the title.

The sound track was adequate; Barry did a fine job of building suspense. In fact, there was a lot more suspense throughout the film than I thought there was going to be. Maybe this can be attributed to Barry’s score. The obvious suspense scenes: the kidnapping, the first visit by the police, the Ransom, and the dumping of the little girl in the woods were all well done. But it was two other scenes I want to talk about that generated more suspense that I thought possible. The second séance, when Mrs. Clayton was there had me on the edge of my seat! I couldn’t believe that I was so riveted by that scene. The other suspenseful scene was just before Myra dropped the bomb about killing the little girl and Attenborough’s subsequent defining moment. The whole audience knows what she is going to say but how the director draws the scene out was just awesome. The direction gets a strong A as well. I look forward to seeing other Forbe’s pictures.

The final thing I want to comment on is the title. I wasn’t sure what to expect by the title, a horror picture, or maybe an art house film. But Séance On A Wet afternoon is definitely an interesting title; séance is not one of those words you use regularly.

"I will pet him, and love him, and call him George."