bookeryfan

Though this film has been compared, in previous reviews, to "Duel", "Breakdown", and others... in many ways it appears this is a remake, or at least, reinvention, of 1981's "Road Games" with Stacy Keach and Jamie Lee Curtis. The movies begin and end similarly, with some variations in between.

I won't go into plot details, as others have covered that territory. But if one is going to do a remake, then it is not unfair to ask if the remake improved or added to the original. Here are some key differences. "RG" was set in Australia. "H" is set in the UK. "RG" featured crisp cinematography and gorgeous views of the Australian outback. "H" features endless shaky-cam and is shot in pouring rain at night. "RG" had dashes of humor and clever banter between the stars. "H" has no humor and has an angry couple bickering at each other. Both movies have prominent plot points featuring dogs (again leading one to believe this is a conscious remake).

Obviously, "Hush" aims to be much darker than "Road Games". It's more violent, but doesn't veer into the gore-fest category of so many modern thrillers. It's not terrible. But the shaky-cam really is quite distracting (someday film historians will look back at this era and say "what were they thinking" that such an annoying gimmick could become so pervasive for a time). In "Road Games" we are immediately attracted to and like the protagonists. We get to see no likability with the couple in "Hush", as we encounter them already in their endgame of a nasty breakup. "Hush" does have a decent twist halfway through, which I won't divulge here.

Ultimately, it's an okay time-passer, but other films have done it better. It's not a waste of your time, but it's also not a film you'll remember a year after having seen it. Thus, 5/10.

No need to cover the plot beyond what has already been said. As has also been stated, in many ways this seems like a one-hour teleplay that has been expanded into a feature film. Though billed as a courtroom drama, most of the screen time is taken up with two romantic subplots and a third drama involving the relationship between Maharis and his mother (Jurado).

Maharis is bland as the lead, as are the two women in his life (this is more of a script problem than the actors' faults). Gene Hackman has a fairly small role as the sheriff, so doesn't really get to shine. The one standout, surprisingly, is Earl Holliman. He can often be hammy or wooden, but here he deftly alternates between sympathetic and despicable in the movie's one complex role.

The other standouts in the film are its period setting (early 1900s New Mexico), and the luminous photography by Robert Burks in his next-to-last film.