Uma Janela Suspeita

A young man named Terry Lambert (Steve Guttenberg) has a romantic fling with his bosses' wife. With their bedroom "activities" in progress, an outside assault occurs that gets Lambert involved, ultimately in murder.

The film's underlying "all for love" theme is not really credible. Plot contrivances, along with incredulous coincidences and improbable timing imply a screenplay that was not well thought out. Further, the lead role in this film calls for a serious actor who can express some feeling. "Police Academy" Guttenberg, boyish and goofy looking, does not lend credibility to the role. That, combined with a dubious script closes any window of believability in this overwrought thriller. And that's too bad because "The Bedroom Window" does present a fairly engaging noir look, as a result of some great lighting and camera work. Production design is also quite good.

The film's visual style is about all I can recommend in the way of interest. The ending is rather melodramatic, and includes some unintentional humor in some scenes that involve a man in a phone booth.

Steve Guttenberg is a real surprise here, playing the innocent suspected of being a killer. His transformation to hero type is not always believable, but his performance is earnest. If you throw out the somewhat of a stretch ending, you are left with a twisty thriller that delivers strong entertainment value. The movie is quite tense at times, and the Baltimore filming location works. I put this film in the same category as movies like "Red Rock West" and "Clay Pigeons". All three have a mostly believable script, competent acting, and most importantly, all three are very entertaining. "The Bedroom Window" is recommended of it's type. - MERK

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!

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.

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.