After "Bewitched" was canceled, star Elizabeth Montgomery was looking to change her image. She eventually succeeded by starring as Lizzie Borden, but before that she appeared in another horror movie of the week called "The Victim" (later re-titled "Out of Contention"), which was adapted from a short story titled "The Storm" (also the basis for a 1962 episode of the anthology series "Thriller").
Montgomery starred as Kate Wainwright, a women who travels to the country to see her sister, Susan (Jess Walton). Arriving during a terrible rainstorm that ultimately cuts her off from civilization altogether, Kate discovers there's no signs of Susan anywhere, only creepy housekeeper Mrs. Hawkes (Eileen Heckart, "The Bad Seed"). As the night wears on, Kate begins to fear something horrible has happened to Susan... and with good reason, since it's established to the audience pretty quickly that Susan is dead in the basement!
"The Victim" is not a great movie, mostly because there's a whole lot of nothing happening. Montgomery wanders around an empty house, converses with the neighbor (Sue Ane Langdon) and others via telephone, as well as with the housekeeper and Susan's soon-to-be ex husband (George Maharis, "Route 66"). Unfortunately, it's blatantly apparent how the movie's gonna end eons before it actually concludes. It's one of those old movies of the week that people seem to have very fond memories of... fuzzy memories of a film that's better than it actually is.
However, the performances are all great -- Heckart and Montgomery bounced lines off one another particularly well. There's also a great sense of dread, a genuinely creepy atmosphere, and some stalking POV shots pre-"Black Christmas" and "Halloween." Not too many films can claim the latter.
The movie's never been released on DVD, but it was issued on VHS in both Canada and the UK as "Out of Contention." This rip is my own of the Canadian video. There's a few minor glitches as the movie begins and a tracking line on the very bottom that I couldn't get rid of, but otherwise the quality is pretty good. Worth noting, however, that the tape ends abruptly without closing credits. And apologies for lack of cover art -- my tape got loaned out years ago and the box wasn't returned (the NTSC cover had a pretty generic painting of a gloomy house; no photos).
The Victim (aka Out of Contention)
1972. Not Rated. 70 mins.
Montgomery starred as Kate Wainwright, a women who travels to the country to see her sister, Susan (Jess Walton). Arriving during a terrible rainstorm that ultimately cuts her off from civilization altogether, Kate discovers there's no signs of Susan anywhere, only creepy housekeeper Mrs. Hawkes (Eileen Heckart, "The Bad Seed"). As the night wears on, Kate begins to fear something horrible has happened to Susan... and with good reason, since it's established to the audience pretty quickly that Susan is dead in the basement!
"The Victim" is not a great movie, mostly because there's a whole lot of nothing happening. Montgomery wanders around an empty house, converses with the neighbor (Sue Ane Langdon) and others via telephone, as well as with the housekeeper and Susan's soon-to-be ex husband (George Maharis, "Route 66"). Unfortunately, it's blatantly apparent how the movie's gonna end eons before it actually concludes. It's one of those old movies of the week that people seem to have very fond memories of... fuzzy memories of a film that's better than it actually is.
However, the performances are all great -- Heckart and Montgomery bounced lines off one another particularly well. There's also a great sense of dread, a genuinely creepy atmosphere, and some stalking POV shots pre-"Black Christmas" and "Halloween." Not too many films can claim the latter.
The movie's never been released on DVD, but it was issued on VHS in both Canada and the UK as "Out of Contention." This rip is my own of the Canadian video. There's a few minor glitches as the movie begins and a tracking line on the very bottom that I couldn't get rid of, but otherwise the quality is pretty good. Worth noting, however, that the tape ends abruptly without closing credits. And apologies for lack of cover art -- my tape got loaned out years ago and the box wasn't returned (the NTSC cover had a pretty generic painting of a gloomy house; no photos).
The Victim (aka Out of Contention) 1972. Not Rated. 70 mins.
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