Cul-de-sac

Two gangsters on the run hide out in a isolated castle that is occupied by Plesance and Dorleac. The two share a rather bizarre passive, aggressive relationship that quickly disintegrates when interrupted by the strangers. Eventually a even more bizarre bonding develops between the couple and Stander, one of the gangsters. Very, very intriguing psychological drama with wonderfully subversive elements lurking just beneath the surface.

Polanski makes full use of the castle showing it's dark, shadowy interior as a sort of symbolic equation to the dark recesses of the human mind. The characters all have their odd traits yet are still believable and compelling to watch. Wonderfully photographed with a strong visual style that really gives this film a distinct look and personality.

Stander, who is probably best known as Max on the old HART TO HART series, has one of his finest roles. He plays a brute that mixes both savage and human traits all at the same time. Plesance though is astounding, playing a truly pathetic character that is simply unforgettable

As 'Cul-de-sac' was Polanski's first movie after his brilliant psychological thriller 'Repulsion' it can't help but be a slight disappointment. Even so, I thought it was an interesting movie and I found it to be much more enjoyable than his next one the totally unfunny spoof 'The Fearless Vampire Killers'. 'Cul-de-sac' is quite difficult to catergorise. In some ways it reminded me of Pinter's 'The Birthday Party' (filmed much later than this but originally staged in the late 1950s), in others of Jack Hill's cult favourite 'Spider Baby' (made earlier but not really released until afterwards), and you could almost see it as prefiguring 'Performance' (old school gangsters meet the new world of the swinging 1960s). But really it quite an odd and unique black comedy. It may not be 100% successful, and it does have a few dull spots, but overall it's worth tracking down if you want to see something different. The main reason it succeeds for me is the unusual location of Lindisfarne, England (which I have visited), and the performances of Donald Pleasence, Francoise Dorleac and Lionel Stander. Pleasence was one of Britain's most underrated character actors, the beautiful and doomed Dorleac had appeared alongside Jean-Paul Belmondo in the entertaining thriller 'That Man From Rio', and Standish, who later appeared in movies by Leone and Spielberg, is best remembered as Max, the craggy manservant on the popular 1980s TV show 'Hart To Hart'. All three are excellent in this movie, and their interaction make it fascinating viewing. The supporting cast also includes Jack MacGowran ('The Exorcist') and an early appearance by 1970s sex symbol Jacqueline Bisset. 'Cul-de-sac' is without a doubt Polanski's most underrated movie, and fans of the unusual and the off beat will enjoy it very much. A DVD with a commentary from Polanski would would be wonderful. Any chance?

Cul-de-sac is a very beautiful black and white movie. It belongs to the lightweight category. The story is weird in an entertaining way, often amusing and sad at once. If the director tried to be willingly shallow, he was very successful. And I do not mean that ironically but say it with awe.

The place is Holy Island, on the east coast of Northern England. It actually gets cut off with the tide. Polanski makes very good use of the location and was very lucky with the casting. All characters are rather detestable in a detached sort of way. Donald Pleasance gives the performance of his life as the emasculated, utterly humiliated owner of the castle on the island. The other two main characters are the brisk yet elf like Françoise Dorléac and Lionel Stander as a gruff, brutal gangster. There is a very strange, truly unique chemistry between Dorléac and Stander. Dorléac does something to Stander. «We call dees a bicycle», she says gleefully with her funny accent, and it nearly knocks me off my chair every time I see that well filmed, suspenseful scene. I won‘t tell you what «de bicycle» is – it may need parental guidance to watch it but does not belong to the restrictable area. Cul-de-sac has a very memorable musical score.

A wounded criminal and his dying partner take up refuge at a beachfront villa, which (not surprisingly) makes the owners less than thrilled.

I watched this as part of my quest to see all of Polanski's films in order. After two psychological films, he has switched to comedy... and I am not entirely sure I get it. Visually, this film is quite stunning and it has some good camera work (including one of the longest continuous sequences in cinematic history at the time of release at 7 minutes and 28 seconds).

Jack Nicholson claimed in an interview in 2007 that this is his favorite film. Not sure what to make of that. I loved Donald Pleasance as the cross-dressing wimp, but beyond that, I just do not think I really got it... the humor was not so strong and the darkness was not all that dark.

This is original, creative and revolutionary as it gets. If you watch it in 2024, sure it won't make such an impact, but take into consideration that this is a 1966 movie. How many dark comedy movies back then could be so exciting, disturbing, funny and weird simultaneously? This is an archetype dark comedy movie, Pleasence's acting performance is excellent, it seems like he came from the future. Stander is more "conventional", still funny and intimidating at times. Every actor here did a good work but it's Polanski who took it on another level. His whole approach was brilliant.

I can't rate it higher because at times it dragged and i can't say i loved the final 15 minutes. This should be even funnier or darker or both. Still, it was a fun ride and if you like dark comedy movies, this is a pioneer of the genre.