Pretty Poison (1968)

Newly released from a mental institution, arsonist Dennis Pitt (Anthony Perkins), seeks a new life for himself in a charming Massachusetts town. And when he meets Sue Ann Stepanek (Tuesday Weld), a beautiful all-American cheerleader, he decides to impress her by posing as a CIA agent. His false persona is seductive to Sue Ann, and in fact, her innocence begins to fade as she becomes more and more enthralled with Pitt's tales of violence. Ultimately, the cheerleader and the ex-convict become a duo capable of doing anything to get what they want ? even murder ? in this exciting psychological drama with exceptional acting and an explosive ending you won't want to miss!

"Pretty Poison" Purrs but Doesn't Growl

Fete of Death
Dennis Pitt, an emotionally disturbed arsonist prone to fantasizing, is released from a mental institution and ventures out into the real world where he tries to impress Sue Ann, a high-school blonde with the face of a baby doll, by pretending to be a spy for the CIA. At the time of Pitt's release from the asylum, his doctor admonished him to stop fantasizing because there is no place for it in the real world. It turns out, though, that the real world contains even crazier and more dangerous psychopaths than do the insane asylums. "Pretty Poison" has a fascinating premise and it should have been a far better movie. The trouble is the direction is flat and uninspired. The movie is slow-paced and fails to build any significant suspense or thrills, which is out of joint with its subject matter. On the other hand, Anthony Perkins and Tuesday Weld turn in well-honed performances as psychopaths, and, oddly enough, of the two, Weld comes off as the scarier. August 16, 2008

Interesting Characters In This Unfairly-Ignored Film

It was great to see Tuesday Weld again, and in her prime, physically. She was a real "looker," to use an old phrase. Just seeing her was worth the price of the rental.

Usually I point out the photography or the riveting story as the facet (s) of the movie I enjoyed best, but in this case it's the actors and characters they played.

It was also fun to see Tony Perkins ("Dennis Pitt") play his Norman Bates-type "Pyscho" character again, although I prefer "Bates" over "Pitt." At least Bates wasn't all talk like Pitt was in this story. "Norman" delivered the goods, when needed! Here, Weld's "Sue Ann Stepanek" walks the talk. Weld, by the way, proves in this film she's a lot more than a pretty face.

For those watching for the first time, I would advise being patient with the first half of this film. The story doesn't really have much spark to it until "Sue Ann" begins to reveal her true inner self. which is not "pretty." Until then, we just get Perkins' nutcase character going on and on to Weld about his supposed CIA connections. Fortunately, as soon as this becomes tiresome, "Sue Ann" saves the film by springing into action.

This a good movie that has been largely ignored over the years. This recent DVD release will help but, at this point, I doubt it will ever been a "known" film except to fans of either Weld or Perkins, or by word of mouth on websites like Amazon. Sadly, I haven't seen this DVD at any the big rental stores. September 5, 2007

Incredibly bad acting

Is everybody reviewing the same movie? I've never seen such bad acting. And why did it get an "R" rating? There isn't any nudity, and the "violence" is a "PG" by all standards. August 16, 2007

Brilliant!

Surprising this hasn't caught on today when the subject is so apropos. But then maybe it's a bit too offbeat because what makes it today with the mainstream is something that *looks* offbeat & hopefully has Ben Stiller & that Diaz babe in it.
Hah! July 22, 2007

Great Little Film

For film buffs everywhere, this is a must for your collection. Perkins and Weld at their finest and most subtle. Today, we have become a tad jaded in our plots, but this film takes one back to a time when scriptwriters were original. Lose yourself in the film and enjoy! March 13, 2007

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