Marlo Thomas does a fairly fine job in this television remake of the 1975 German film "The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum" in which she plays a single woman who picks up a charming man at a party and takes him home with her; unfortunately, he's a terrorist-suspect under surveillance by the police--and once the marauding press become involved (selling the story as pure sensationalism), the woman's private life becomes headline news. In the film's early scenes, Thomas is flirtatious and lovely, traits which are quickly abandoned once her home is invaded and she's dragged through the proverbial mud. The movie loses its humanity just as Marlo loses her innate sparkle, and the lack of self-effacing humor or light relief of any kind makes the film a heavy wallow. Still, it takes several trenchant, trendy swipes at exploitative journalistic tactics and ends on a thoughtful note.
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christophaskell8 October 2003It saddens me to know that even back in 1984 Hollywood was remaking stuff without giving the original film recognition. Being a bit young, I assumed that this was a poison affecting only today's studios, perhaps a sign of the times. Unfortunately not, however, and unbeknown to the general public there's a beautiful film that inspired this made for TV blah. 'Ocean's Eleven', 'The Italian Job' to name a few: all films from the archives of Hollywood that recently have been remade with your average-joe movie fan having no idea of their remake status. Even with smaller releases such as 'Welcome to Collinwood', nowhere on the DVD case does it pay respect to 'Big Deal on Madonna Street', which it has no problem copying scene by scene. Anyways, enough ranting; on with the show. Kathryn (Marlo Thomas) is a private business owner, Ben Cole (Kris Kristofferson) is a runaway bank thief/political activist/all around nice guy, and at a party they randomly bump into each other, finding themselves an hour later in each other's arms on Kathryn's living room couch (not any longer at the party). Kathryn didn't know about Ben's past (or did she?), so naturally when the uniforms come busting down her door the next morning she is quite shocked, and wants to know what's going on. She has no information for the cops (or does she?), yet as she is their only lead they continue to harass her and generally make her life miserable. As the film progresses we find out she might not be quite as innocent as first presumed, and she might, in fact, have something to offer the troublesome police. If you're going to watch this film please go out and rent `The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum', as you will love the story and understand very well the extent of Katharina's knowledge. If you have to watch the American remake, don't. It's an interesting story that forces you to look at the media in a different light, but it just wasn't pulled off very well in the 1984 remake, and despite the two leads the acting is surprisingly subpar. Rating: 16/40
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anitaken20 September 2023Alan Dershowitz provided legal input on this film, and it is very much true that innocent bystanders have far fewer rights than actual criminal suspects, as caterer Kathryn Beck finds to her ultimate destruction. A theme which is not explicitly explored, but which certainly ought to have been more acknowledged in reviews, is the double standard for men and women regarding their personal lives. The fact that Kathryn took a man she had only just met at party to her home afterward is an automatic assumption that she is a bad woman, ergo, she is not entitled to any presumption of innocence, not only by the media types who make her life unbearable, but even by the police, who also treat her without any dignity in the hopes that she will lead them to her new friend, whom they believe is actually an old friend, a suspected terrorist, with whom she must be in cahoots. As it happens, they find him on their own, and he offers no resistance. When he is able to produce a key showing that he cannot be accused of breaking and entering, his rights are quite secure; he is entitled to a defense and an assumption of innocence. He is actually troubled by Kathryn's dilemma, having contacted her while he was still free, and he tries to convince the authorities that she was not part of anything that he is accused of. He has more integrity, actually, than either the media or the police, and his guilt or innocence (is he a victim of excessive FBI and local police surveillance? Such things have happened, and continue to happen, as government agencies are weaponized against perceived "enemies") is still not established as the film ends with the emotionally traumatized Kathryn killing her nemesis from the media. Marlo Thomas and Kris Kristofferson both give superb performances, in particular Kristofferson's highly nuanced performance as a handsome charmer who may or may not be a very dangerous man.