Hands of a Stranger

If one is inclined to see a movie that has about everything, romance, good detective development and raw scenes - you have hit the jackpot in Hands of a Stranger. The U.S. Version which was done for TV - and then put on VHS is featured in two parts, and it's kind of long, almost 3 hours. However, I found it so intriguing that time flew by. The casting was excellent, Armand Assante, and Beverly D'Angelo are at their best. Each and every player did a great job - extremely convincing. The story line is great, and you'll want to see the whole thing at one time. In today's world, many movies lack convincing story lines and sensible scenes - not so with this one, done in 1987. If you haven't seen it - go for it, you won't be disappointed.

What great promise this had, but what a "yawner" it was. I saw this on the Lifetime Cable Network, all in one sitting. I assume when it aired originally in 1987, it was in mini-series form, or shown over several nights. I guess seeing it in smaller installments, it would be more tolerable, but it just dragged, and dragged, and dragged.

I thought with the talent involved, this movie had huge potential, but I was snoozing by the third hour. As I said, I'll assume that in hour long chapters, this might have been more enjoyable, but as a four hour showing, it was not fun, at all.

The concept was good, but it took waaaaaaaaay too long to get the story moving, and at times, the actors seemed to be sleep walking thru their roles. Yes, we know Armand Assante is trouble by what's going on, but the act becomes really tedious. I'm amazed "Joe Hearn" kept his job, for as long as he did with all the time he was away from the office.

If you dig "The Repercussions of Adultery" type movies, this will suit you just fine. If not, "The Weather Channel", is a better watching experience...

Although it is a shade on the long side, "Hands Of A Stranger" is a distinctly superior crime thriller with an unusual though plausible plot. A senior detective is assigned to crack a gang who are raping women and videoing them while doing so, then his own wife is raped, not by one of the gang but by a two-bit crook whose usual pastime is robbery coupled with blackmail. His modus operandi is taking embarrassing photographs of adulterers in one of those room-by-the-hour hotels. Our hero's wife has been flattered by a younger man who takes her to one of these places on impulse after a liquid lunch - who says romance is dead? She changes her mind at the last moment, then the crook walks in. Embarrassing or what?

The plot develops from there with Detective Hearn slowly waking up to the full truth; she tells him about the rape but gives him a cock and bull story about how it happened. What now? Well, quite a lot. One question, was it really possible to determine the sex of a person from a strand or two of hair in 1987?

Doesn't this movie remind you a lot like the new movie "Derailed"? When I first saw the preview for Derailed I immediately remembered a movie with Beverly D Angelo, where she has a fling, someone breaks into the hotel room, her and the Guy (the fling) are tied up or handcuffed, bad things happen to Beverly's character. I haven't seen Derailed yet. And I have not heard from anyone else that these movies seem a lot alike. In the reviews I've read Clive and Jennifers characters have a fling and a Bad guy breaks in and rapes Jennifer's character, and then there is a major twist. Also the reviews on Derailed have not been the best. But just from the reviews and the trailer I thought Derailed had to be a remake of this old movie I had seen years ago. And only located it today on IMDb under Beverly D Angelo.

I am seeing Derailed this weekend and will update.

1st of all whoever said this movie was only 2 hours & 10 minutes long must have seen a Butchered severely Edited version of it because I just saw the entire film and including the credits it's 3 hours,5 minutes and 46 seconds long. A 2 part miniseries about a cop who's bent on solving his wife's rape. even without her wanting him to . This film has twists and turns and things you wont expect but is written like real life .They don't make movies like this often . this is not a cookie cutter clone like so many. it is a well written well acted TV movie worth a watch .