De l'amour à la haine

This short movie (74 min. cut down to 70 for the VHS release)has some very attractive performers and a plot with great possibilities. However, there was very little actual development of the story line because of the extreme time limits placed on the production. Ryan O'Neal plays a preppy suitor for the hand of the lovely but wafer-thin model, Lesley Ann Warren. Lesley becomes distracted by the forceful suitor played by Peter Haskell, who is also insanely jealous and beats Ryan to a near-pulp when he parts ways with Lesley Ann. This display of insanity puts Haskell on the loser's block but he vows revenge and stalks the now-reconciled young couple who have married and sought safety across the country. The resolution of this problem creates a very interesting and unusual ending of the story. Too bad the "powers that be" have chosen not to release this on DVD so a new generation can enjoy this dated but absorbing drama with the edited footage restored.

Beautiful model in New York has to decide between two suitors; unfortunately, the one she chooses turns out to be a jealous psychotic, sending her back into the arms of the first boyfriend, whom she marries. After the newlyweds move to California, the loser--jilted and delusional--closes in on their lives. Unpleasant TV-made stalker-drama from producer Aaron Spelling was ahead of its time in terms of subject matter, though the story is creepy and pointless. Lesley Ann Warren works herself into a real tizzy worrying that new hubby Ryan O'Neal won't be able to protect them from crazy Peter Haskell, though Ryan has apparently been working out at the gym behind her back (resulting in an evening street brawl which fails to raise any concern from the neighbors). The finale is directed for melodramatic chills, rendering the potentially gripping plot dynamics moot. One can easily see why up-and-coming star O'Neal signed onto this project: he gets to be the sensitive good guy while also playing macho and protecting his helpless wife from the scary villain. His performance isn't bad--and Haskell is careful not to overdo the wild-eyed bit--yet the picture takes mere surface-swipes at its own possibilities. It was designed to be a paranoia thriller for soap opera fans, and as such is callow and disposable.

Those ABC Movie's were very well done and this movie stands out as one of their best. It had a good cast with a plot not done so much back then and way before "Fatal Attraction" or the other fatal movies that followed were made. I agree with the last reviewer and love the fact that this movie didn't rely on too much violence, language or sex to make its point.

I wish I knew who did the music for this movie, that theme was really catchy and jazzy, sort of like the sound of Burt Bacharach (who did the ABC Movie of the Week theme, better known and named "Nikki").

I'd love to see some of these ABC movies released on video, they're well worth having in your collection!

Since it's been 35 years since I saw this quickie TV flick, my memory is limited to a few basic plot points--model pretty Lesley Ann Warren gets stalked by wacky Peter Haskill and defended by boyfriend Ryan O'Neal. I actually remember one line of dialogue from Love Hate Love, something about Warren having a "yummy body."

Something to tickle the mind of a 14 year old.

The two things that stand out about the movie are the pure watch-ability of Warren, who in her younger days had an intense vulnerability that, matched with her shortness-of-breath-inducing beauty, would make a movie of her reading the dictionary captivating. Also, even though LHL was one of episodes of the usually putrid ABC Movie(s) of the Week, it was a surprisingly topical and suspenseful time-waster.

Yes, for a 14 year old.

Thos ABC movies were a regular feature in our house. They varied from comedy to drama, to action and featured lots of up and coming actors, as well as real veterans of TV and movies.

In addition, the movies were written for TV and never seemed chopped up by commercials. The breaks were factored in, so that no one missed anything.

This particular movie was one of our favorites, in the era before Fatal Attraction. The idea of stalking was very scary, and in this movie the inability to get rid of Peter Haskell's character and his seeming obsession with her was terrifying, given the era.