An excellent performance by Matthew Rhys (both of them) makes it all the more astonishing that he is able to resist the attractions of Alice Orr- Ewing, the wife that he discovers at Knebworth when his double sends him there. Instead, he gets into bed with the drab mistress in the village, who has little to offer except praise for his "gentleness" compared to his double. Eventually, of course, he does succumb: who wouldn't? She is highly orgasmic and satisfied, and it is all the more horrifying when the double reappears and persuades he to allow him to kill her with an overdose of his mother's morphine, thereby securing her fortune for himself and leaving his double to pay. Fortunately, the good guy gets back just in time, saves Frances's life, sees off his opponent, and everyone lives happily ever after. Alright, the part where he persuades he to allow herself to be killed was highly unconvincing, even for a supposed weakling, but we can overlook that because she is so gorgeous- looking in a nightie! This is a charming picture that reminds us of the skills of the lending-library queen, Daphne Du Maurier. Recommended viewing.
Review of The Scapegoat
