Love Hate Love

Thos ABC movies were a regular feature in our house. They varied from comedy to drama, to action and featured lots of up and coming actors, as well as real veterans of TV and movies.

In addition, the movies were written for TV and never seemed chopped up by commercials. The breaks were factored in, so that no one missed anything.

This particular movie was one of our favorites, in the era before Fatal Attraction. The idea of stalking was very scary, and in this movie the inability to get rid of Peter Haskell's character and his seeming obsession with her was terrifying, given the era.

This is one of those great "TV Movies of the Week" that were so popular from the late 60's to early 70's. Many of these were actually very good and entertaining. This one has Lesley Ann Warren playing a fashion model who has a new boyfriend, Ryan O'Neal. Trouble is her ex-boyfriend Peter Haskell is a psycho who will stop at nothing to break them up. Seems he just can't let go and move on with his life. Lesley even moves across the country to get away from this jerk. Lesley's mother makes the stupidest mistake on earth by telling this moron that Lesley's moved to "California". Well, the old bag thinks California is a big state so he will never find her. WRONG! He immediately tracks her down and her new beau Ryan and makes them both pay. Kind of silly at the time, this was 1971, a good 15 years or so before stalking became a real problem for many celebs. This TV flick is actually kind of ahead of it's time. Acting is good, Peter Haskell makes a very good villian, Lesley Ann Warren has always been underrated. Unfortunately, they don't make 'em like this anymore. No blood gushing, no four letter words every ten seconds but still fun to watch.

When the film begins, Sheila (Leslie Ann Warren) is telling her old boyfriend, Russ (Ryan O'Neil), that she's met someone she loves...and the old boyfriend accepts this like a stand-up guy. However, when he meets the new boyfriend, Leo (Peter Haskell), he's attacked and nearly beaten to death by the super-controlling new boyfriend. Needless to say, Sheila's love for Leo is gone...but Leo isn't. He soon begins stalking Sheila and threatening her...and he clearly tells her that she WILL marry him! Talk about a horrible ex-boyfriend! This guy obviously is mentally imbalanced and dangerous...but folks don't seem all that worried about him. The old boyfriend, Sheila and her father all have witnessed his clearly illegal behaviors...but they are hesitant to press charges though God only knows why. And, even when Sheila marries Russ, he continues to stalk her...yet folks don't seem to take this maniac seriously. Even when he shows up in the other side of the country where Sheila now lives, the couple are remarkably unworried about this! Obviously they'll end up regretting this by the end of the film--even after they move across the country to get away from him!

The summary on IMDb calls Leo a 'psychotic' but that is not quite right for folks like this in real life. Leo's complete lack of conscience and violent tendencies would clearly qualify him as an Antisocial Personality (frequently called a 'Sociopath') as well as a Erotomania (a stalker). These are more recent psychological terms but are much more appropriate given his behaviors...at least up until the end of the movie. Making him a psychotic at the very end makes him seem rare or legally incompetent...but sadly violent stalkers like this are amazingly common and know exactly what they're doing.

So is the film any good? Well, it does draw attention to creeps like Leo--so it is a good public service sort of picture. While the story is a bit extreme, it does illustrate how many of these folks behave. Unfortunately, the film also is a bit silly and poorly written at times, such as the folks refusing to talk to the police until the very end. And, the finale...wow...it went for sensationalism more than providing a meaningful ending. Overall, a very mixed bag--a great idea but not executed especially well. Plus the ending pretty much undoes the good in the film up until then.

By the way, beware of the opening song....it is hellishly awful. Resist the impulse to change the channel or throw objects at your television. Or, just hit the MUTE button!

Since it's been 35 years since I saw this quickie TV flick, my memory is limited to a few basic plot points--model pretty Lesley Ann Warren gets stalked by wacky Peter Haskill and defended by boyfriend Ryan O'Neal. I actually remember one line of dialogue from Love Hate Love, something about Warren having a "yummy body."

Something to tickle the mind of a 14 year old.

The two things that stand out about the movie are the pure watch-ability of Warren, who in her younger days had an intense vulnerability that, matched with her shortness-of-breath-inducing beauty, would make a movie of her reading the dictionary captivating. Also, even though LHL was one of episodes of the usually putrid ABC Movie(s) of the Week, it was a surprisingly topical and suspenseful time-waster.

Yes, for a 14 year old.

O'Neal is dumped by Warren for Haskell after she falls for Haskell and his jet setting life style while O'Neal is out of town and not realizing at the time that the guy is a control freak among other things. She meets O'Neal at the airport to cut it off but Haskell shows up. Surprised Warren introduces them and Haskell puts a beating on O'Neal that to me is still one of the most realistic that I have ever seen on film. After O'Neal gets put in the hospital Warren dumps Haskell for O'Neal and the stalking begins. Great movie and in the early seventies was touching on a stalking problem that had been around forever and even ending in murder at times but the laws still hadn't caught up.