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Overall Rating : 7.5/10
Directed By : Philip Leacock
Cloris Leachman (Mary Tyler Moore (TV) )
Ross Martin (The Wild Wild West (TV) )
Ned Beatty (Superman II)
Dana Elcar (Macgyver (TV) )
Supplied By : Warner Archive
Film Reviewed By : Rick L. Blalock
Date Reviewed : January 19, 2010
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| PLOT The story follows Jean Miller, whose husband disappears after they stop at the dusty crossroads diner. No one – not even the sheriff – will help her. So Jean desperately begins her own investigation, one that leads her straight into an ingenious web of mystery and murder. |
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| THE REVIEW DYING ROOM ONLY is a 1973 Television production about a husband and wife named Bob and Jean Mitchell whom decide to stop for food at an Arizona diner out in the desert on their last day of vacation before heading home. When they arrive at the diner, they find that the place is virtually rundown and the townsfolk aren't the most welcoming bunch, in fact, the diner's kitchen is nearly bare and inconsistent with the menu. This cause a little tension between Bob and diner owner Jim, which in turn makes Jean a little uneasy and eager to leave the place. In between Jean goes to the bathroom, but when she returns it's as if Bob were never there - vanishing all of the sudden. In a panic, Jean begins to query everyone about her husband's whereabouts, but she finds that no one is willing to be assistance to her, even the town's Sheriff initially turns a deaf ear to her story. Jean eventually resorts to investigating the matter herself as things start to grow stranger by the minute. Her search eventually leads to her uncovering the truth about the Arizona town's residents and a crime operation regarding tourists that have been going on for quite some time. The classics keep coming from Warner Brothers' Warner archive as they release this, another highly sought after 1973 Television film starring Emmy Winner Cloris Leachman. So far, I have been very impressed with Warner's "made-to-order" line, "Warner Archive", with this the third film that I have seen and reviewed from the line, I have to say that Warner continues to impress, as this film is yet another great lost gem. The latest release is the thriller, DYING ROOM ONLY. which is one that I had never seen nor heard of myself, but the plot outline states on the cover, reeled me in with curiosity. The story here in itself is a simple one, and of course we have seen many variations of such - a couple of out-of-towners drift into a small town that is a bit strange, from it's location in my middle of nowhere to it's inhabitants. In DYING ROOM ONLY, the place for the film's plot catapult is a small-town Diner. Jean and Bob Mitchell decide to stop by the diner for a bite to eat before they drive home after vacation, but they both soon realize that the Diner's menu is sparse and the attitudes of all whom are there, are none to friendly, so much so that Bob gets into a near spat with the owner. After a bathroom break, Jean returns to the table to find that husband Bob has vanished into nearly thin air. With Bob nowhere in sight, Jean begins to question everyone, but they don't seem to have the want to lend her any help, so of course Jean does a little digging on her own, and she uncovers a shocker indeed. DYING ROOM ONLY is another one of those well written 1970s made-for-TV movies that is unlike anything we are likely to see on our TV screens today - i'm being truthful when I say that after watching a film such as this one, it's painfully obvious, just how lazy and uninspired TV output has gotten as of late. Penned by Tim Matheson(who is also responsible for I AM LEGEND), DYING ROOM ONLY is a film that starts out a mystery and in it's latter half, becomes a thriller that creates a since of dread. This film is one that does not give itself away too easy as it slowly builds it's way up and with each moment has you guessing for almost every step of the way. In my opinion it does a good job of concealing things, as I found myself looking on with interest, just wondering what would happen next - for a Television movie it tells it's story quite well, in a fashion that is not too rushed nor overly dramatic or exaggerated. The acting by the film's rather small cast is headed by Leachman, who here shows us as to why she has won 8 Emmys over the course of her career. The character of Jean Mitchell is brought to life as being vulnerable, but not too vulnerable as she later breaks out into her own investigation into the town's private goings-on when no one else would Leachman does her job well as she portrayals the character with a level of realism and not artificial-ism, she's one that you root for - which is virtually what every good Horror/Thriller film needs and has. Also accompanying these stories is usually a good villain as well, and in this case we have a few, but most importantly, there are the characters portrayed by Ross Martin and Ned Beatty, Jim Cutler and Tom King respectably. Not wanting to divulge very much of just what the film's outcome is, i'll just describe the two characters as being a bit strange and and the end not so nice - and Martin and Beatty succeed at being both. In supporting roles of note, we as have Dana Elcar as the Sheriff and Dabney Coleman as Bob, Jean's disappearing husband. Neither of which are used in a heavy capacity, but i'd say they portray roles that are very instrumental to the film's story. Overall, DYING ROOM ONLY is yet another great Lorimar Productions title that is finally being released by Warner Archive, it's one many may have not seen or heard of, but are likely to enjoy. The film starts off a bit slow but wastes no time in picking up the pace or suspense within it's relatively short runtime of 74 minutes, in the end the film turns out to be highly enjoyable. |
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| GORE
METER N/A No elaborate effects of any kind that I can remember, just great suspense. |
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MUSICAL
SCORE 4.5/10 The score was mostly composed with electric synthesizer to create suspenseful tones, it definitely has a retro sound that fits the time in which the film was made. | ||||
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| OVERALL
IMPRESSION OF THE FILM DYING ROOM ONLY is a really good film for made-for-TV standards, and in comparison it reminds me a little of the Kurt Russell film BREAKDOWN. In that film, a man's wife goes missing after their car breaks down, forcing him to go alone in search, finding a shocking outcome. In this film, the roles are reversed and the plot similar, you have to wonder, was DYING ROOM ONLY a point of inspiration for the previously mentioned film? It's a possibility. This Warner Archive release is presented in 4:3 full frame aspect ratio and put together film the best possible print available(which is a pretty good one, minus some pops and scratches here and there. And as always, there are no special features here, just a plain menu and the film itself, but still Warner is in my opinion with this specialty line, is offering a great service to fans look for some of the most sought after films on DVD. Buy DYING ROOM ONLY from the Warner Archive online, HERE. |
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