Love Hate Love

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.

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.

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.

O'Neal is dumped by Warren for Haskell after she falls for Haskell and his jet setting life style while O'Neal is out of town and not realizing at the time that the guy is a control freak among other things. She meets O'Neal at the airport to cut it off but Haskell shows up. Surprised Warren introduces them and Haskell puts a beating on O'Neal that to me is still one of the most realistic that I have ever seen on film. After O'Neal gets put in the hospital Warren dumps Haskell for O'Neal and the stalking begins. Great movie and in the early seventies was touching on a stalking problem that had been around forever and even ending in murder at times but the laws still hadn't caught up.

When the film begins, Sheila (Leslie Ann Warren) is telling her old boyfriend, Russ (Ryan O'Neil), that she's met someone she loves...and the old boyfriend accepts this like a stand-up guy. However, when he meets the new boyfriend, Leo (Peter Haskell), he's attacked and nearly beaten to death by the super-controlling new boyfriend. Needless to say, Sheila's love for Leo is gone...but Leo isn't. He soon begins stalking Sheila and threatening her...and he clearly tells her that she WILL marry him! Talk about a horrible ex-boyfriend! This guy obviously is mentally imbalanced and dangerous...but folks don't seem all that worried about him. The old boyfriend, Sheila and her father all have witnessed his clearly illegal behaviors...but they are hesitant to press charges though God only knows why. And, even when Sheila marries Russ, he continues to stalk her...yet folks don't seem to take this maniac seriously. Even when he shows up in the other side of the country where Sheila now lives, the couple are remarkably unworried about this! Obviously they'll end up regretting this by the end of the film--even after they move across the country to get away from him!

The summary on IMDb calls Leo a 'psychotic' but that is not quite right for folks like this in real life. Leo's complete lack of conscience and violent tendencies would clearly qualify him as an Antisocial Personality (frequently called a 'Sociopath') as well as a Erotomania (a stalker). These are more recent psychological terms but are much more appropriate given his behaviors...at least up until the end of the movie. Making him a psychotic at the very end makes him seem rare or legally incompetent...but sadly violent stalkers like this are amazingly common and know exactly what they're doing.

So is the film any good? Well, it does draw attention to creeps like Leo--so it is a good public service sort of picture. While the story is a bit extreme, it does illustrate how many of these folks behave. Unfortunately, the film also is a bit silly and poorly written at times, such as the folks refusing to talk to the police until the very end. And, the finale...wow...it went for sensationalism more than providing a meaningful ending. Overall, a very mixed bag--a great idea but not executed especially well. Plus the ending pretty much undoes the good in the film up until then.

By the way, beware of the opening song....it is hellishly awful. Resist the impulse to change the channel or throw objects at your television. Or, just hit the MUTE button!