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This thriller would have made a great Hitchcock movie. As it stands, it's not too bad but it could have been so much better. However, any film that can engage the attention for nearly two hours must have something going for it and this does have an intriguing story line. It also has the advantage of a good cast, Steve Guttenberg is his usual affable self doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, Elizabeth McGovern brings a wonderful hard edge to her performance and Isabelle Huppert is beautiful but nasty. Brad Greenquist manages to imbue his role with a sinister quality without saying barely a word. The plot doesn't really hold up unfortunately and there are plenty of scenes that stretch credulity just too far. However if you are prepared to accept the film on just a surface level you will find yourself nicely entertained.

Sometimes, people do the wrong thing, for a good reason. This isn't always right, but it's understandable. I think this is the premise for The Bedroom Window. People are human, and sometimes irrational behavior leads to something that can get more serious than originally anticipated.

That is exactly what happens in this movie. Terry Lambert, played by Steve Guttenberg in what may just be his best performance, is a good man whose judgment isn't always the greatest. Terry is a business executive who makes the unwise decision of having an affair with his boss's wife, a beautiful french woman named Sylvia. One night at his apartment, she witnesses a young man assaulting a female. Obviously, she cannot go forward. Later, after learning of a different female being murdered near the scene that same night, he decides he'll go forward and report that he was the witness. "It's my apartment, my bedroom window," he says in an attempt to justify the dishonesty.

The only problem, which proves to be a damaging blow, is that nothing can be proved about the murder. So, the only chance to convict the assailant is to prosecute on the assault case. The logic being it at least gives the authorities a chance to put the killer away to prevent him from hurting anyone else, while still hoping to find evidence connecting him to the murder. So Terry must testify during the trial that he witnessed the assault. In a brilliant scene, the defendant's attorney carves him up like an overcooked turkey, making it very clear that Terry is lying, but not why.

As the authorities become suspicious of Terry, he begins to bond, through shared experience, with Denise, the woman who was assaulted outside his apartment. She later figures out that Sylvia, and not Terry, saw the murder. "The question isn't What am I going to do? It's what are you going to do? And what is she going to do?," she says harshly and angrily, but not at all incorrectly. They both later discover, at least partially, the killer's motives, and agree that the only way to implicate him, and clear Terry, is to trap him and catch him in the act.

Steve Guttenberg is magnificent as the scared, confused, and conscientious Terry. Elizabeth McGovern and Isabelle Huppert are equally as good as the women who care about him, but are unsure how to figure him out, or what to do. McGovern shows her very good acting ability with non-verbals that demonstrate clearly that she knows something isn't right about Terry through her facial expressions and the looks in her eyes. The cast of this movie work together like a well-oiled machine, and the story may not have been as compelling had it not been for the convincing actors.

This is writing at its best, top notch acting, and filmmaking on a master scale. The movie is so well-made that we love the story, understand the characters and their situations, and just can't wait to see what happens next. This movie is a classic, and also a great thriller. Watch it!

Directed by future phenom Curtis (L.A. Confidential, Wonder Boys) Hanson, THE BEDROOM WINDOW is an elegant Hitchcock homage, and an example of good 1980s moviemaking. Its got a certain vibe, thanks to terrific cinematography by the great Gilbert Taylor, production design by Ron Foreman, and expert direction by Hanson. REAR WINDOW it ain't, but this jazzy film is still worth a look. Lighten up folks!

The Bedroom Window is directed by Curtis Hanson who also adapts the screenplay from the novel The Witnesses written by Anne Holden. It stars Steve Guttenberg, Elizabeth McGovern, Isabelle Huppert, Brad Greenquist and Paul Shenar. Music is by Patrick Gleeson and Michael Shrieve and cinematography by Gilbert Taylor.

Terry Lambert (Guttenberg) is having an affair with his boss' wife Sylvia Wentworth (Huppert). Together one night at Terry's apartment, Sylvia witnesses from the bedroom window an attack on Denise (McGovern) and scares off the assailant. Not wishing to expose her affair with Terry, she refuses to report what she saw, instead allowing Terry to come forward to help the police finger the man who Sylvia saw by pretending it was he who witnessed the crime. But when Terry's evidence comes under scrutiny he finds himself the focus of the police search for the rapist and murderer at large...

With shades of Hitchcock and De Palma, The Bedroom Window is an effective neo-noir like thriller. Guttenberg's protagonist begins to pay severely for his illicit dalliances as he lands in a world quickly spinning out of his control. Duped and a victim of circumstance, this law abiding citizen just wants to do the right thing. This sets up a narrative that isn't shy to toy with audience expectations, keeping suspense high as the wronged man - aided by a spunky femme - sets about proving his innocence and ensuring the guilty man, Henderson (Grenquist) (who we know about from the off) is brought to justice. A couple of twists keep things perky, where even though some contrived events ask a lot of the audience, film never drifts into the mundane.

Hanson would strike a considerable chord with the neo-noir faithful when he brought L.A. Confidential to the screen in 1997. Here, much like with Bad Influence (1990), the director hones his skills as a visualist. The Baltimore locations are often shaded as being places of possible peril, while Gilbert Taylor's photography neatly blends golden promise in daytime shots with shadowy menace at night. Acting performances are hit and miss. Guttenberg surprisingly is effective in a serious role, mainly because it fits the character to have an easy going guy spun into disarray. Huppert struggles as the femme fatale by giving a one dimensional turn, but McGovern lights up the screen with poise and purpose and saves the film from taking a trip up average street in the final third. As for Greenquist? Visually scary and Hanson wisely keeps him as a silent assassin type.

Those contrivances, a dated feel and the valid charges of it being copyist have kept it from essential viewing status. But there is still a strong thriller in the mix and for anyone interested in Hanson's work this is a good addition to your required viewing list. 7/10

Although he rarely gets respect from the critics, Steve Guttenberg was quite a big film star in the 1980's. He made his first impression as a pudgy teenager who gets killed by Gregory Peck in the excellent "Boys From Brazil"(1978). The classic "Diner"(MGM,1982) established him as a fine actor and in "Police Academy"(1984) he was suddenly a buff leading man in a critically maligned yet audience loved box office blockbuster. He was now a "STAR" and the smash hits kept coming: several "Police Academy" sequels, "Short Circuit"(1985) and its sequel, the Oscar-winning classic Ron Howard's "Coccoon"(Universal, 1985) whose pool scene established him as a minor sex symbol, and finally the massive blockbuster "Three Men and a Baby"(Disney, 1987). Director/writer Curtis Hanson then cast him in the excellent Hitchcockian thriller "The Bedroom Window"(1987) alongside another young star of the time Elizabeth McGovern who had made a major impact in "Ragtime"(Paramount, 1981). Now he was a full-fledged star of a Top "A" quality film. This excellent thriller will keep you glued to screen. Hanson's taut direction, the gorgeous cinematography, and the excellent cast will hold your attention. The script has a couple holes but it is still very good. And Guttenberg who had a goofy face and could look geeky if not photographed carefully looks great so this should have been another feather in his cap. However this film tanked. Why I will never know. After this he would have one more big hit with "Three Men and a Little Lady"(Disney, 1990) and that was it. His career never recovered. Nonetheless his best films are definitely worth a look and "The Bedroom Window" is certainly among his best.