The Surrogate (1984)
Frank and Lee have marital problems: he's been impotent for 18 months, she alternates between sympathy and criticism. His temper gets the best of him, so he's seeing a psychotherapist who finds the anger and the impotence related. She recommends that Frank and Lee hire a mysterious European woman to lead them through fantasies intended to unlock passion and help them heal. At the same time this is going on, the police are investigating a series of stabbings: as corpses pile up, we wonder if Frank's temper may be behind this; or perhaps it's Eric, a cross-dressing neighbor and friend of Lee's; it may even be the European woman, who keeps popping up with new fantasies.
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hyped garbage
Excellent, Without a doubt!!
It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
Art Hindle and Shannon Tweed (who doesn't look too good in this early role; IMO her looks improved with age) bring to you the ultimate in dysfunctional married couples: he's a bad-tempered car salesman with frequent outbursts of anger, and she's his frigid rich wife who doesn't like to be touched by anyone except herself. Can the enigmatic "sex surrogate" Carole Laure help them solve their problems by immersing them in a series of wild fantasies? And who is killing all those people around the neighborhood, puzzling police detective Michael Ironside? It's this collection of messed-up, edgy, unpredictable characters that makes "The Surrogate" so intriguing to watch. The movie seems to be on the edge of parody at times, but (thankfully) it never falls over. The final twist is not unguessable after a certain point, but it still makes for a pretty tense climax. (***)
I saw this film one time when I stumbled across it in a video store several years ago. I thought of it again recently when a friend and I were discussing movies, and I decided to see what IMDB had to say about it. The only review was negative. While the acting was not all that great, I thought that the plot was excellent. This is a classic "whodunnit?" that will keep you guessing all the way until the ending. I mentioned it to my nephew who is a real film buff. He managed to find a copy and also enjoyed it thoroughly. Well worth renting if you can find it. Don't bother with Blockbuster; it's way too much of a sleeper to be on their shelves. Try a mom & pop video store if you're fortunate enough to have one near you. Or maybe an internet video rental service.
With the notable exception of the exotic Carole Laure, this movie is poorly acted. The direction is terrible. The story is poorly written. There is no semblance for the plot ending. There isn't even a good reason for the title.Shannon Tweed is her normal gorgeous self. But you have to have more reason than that to give a movie two hours of your life.