After serving twelve years in prison for murder, a young woman (Geraldine Chaplin) seeks out the man who was her husband (Anthony Perkins) at the time the murder was committed. Why would she do this? The background story to this film is almost better than what's actually in the movie, although the movie is not bad at all. The crucial point comes when Perkins' character tries to explain the situation to his present wife, played by interesting Berry Berenson, after she has already encountered the rather menacing part played by Chaplin, in a tense scene in which Chaplin enters their (Berenson's and Perkins') house while Berenson is cutting up Romaine lettuce for tonight's salad. After she (Chaplin's character) is arrested for breaking and entering, Perkins's character decides not to press charges and then must explain why to Berenson's character. It's at this point in this movie that you can begin to figure out Chaplin's character's motivations, which lie nearly concealed. In this murky light Chaplin's character isn't as crazy as it is made out to be in the script, although twelve years of prison have taught her a lot about how to go about the judicious use of aggression, guilt, and other persuasive characteristics. The ending comes up rather fast, though endings like this one cause reflection, and that reflection may lead to the conclusion that in actuality there was nothing left for her to accomplish. She drives off on the same road she entered when the film begins.
Review of Remember My Name
