Terraces

I've actually seen this one too...but recently! This was on cable one night at about 3:00AM when I was up with my infant daughter.

Not much plot here, just the daily lives of a group of people in an apartment building. Yes, there's lots of awful 70's home decor and clothing--probably why I watched. Hard to believe this was on late night cable, much less prime time network television!

Aired in 1977, this was one of the very very first TV movies that had a very sympathetic gay plot line! And for that time period, the plot line was and is very moving and touching. For that reason I think it's valuable to watch the film (now on Netflix Instant), even if only to see how daring it was for the times.

The overarching set-up of the movie is that it takes place in an LA apartment complex, and follows the inhabitants of five of the apartments on the eighth floor whose terraces adjoin one another. These include Julie, a gal getting her very first apartment and who has a bit of low self-esteem; Roberta and Martin, a retired Jewish couple; Beth and Gregg, a young "golden couple" who are having marital difficulties; a flakey glamour girl (Julie Newmar); and Alex, a young gay actor.

Alex is good-humored and bright but feels like a flake. His meeting and falling in love with and having a serious affair with an older, married doctor (Lloyd Bochner) however, has given his life meaning. But when the doctor's wife attempts to track down the "other woman" in her husband's life, things come to a head.

I found this riveting in 1977. Perhaps it's less so now, and certainly the 1970s' music and TV production values and even the dialogue can seem a bit dated now, but I think the movie still holds up as an interesting ensemble piece of multiple overlapping story lines, highlighted in particular by the excellent gay-related plot. Check it out.

Featherweight story (if it qualifies as a story) about the residents of an apartment block and their zany, sometimes emotional lifestyles and relationships. Manza is the nosey doorman, Newmar is an athletic singleton, McDonough the ugly duckling and Bochner coming to terms with his son's coming out. All in all, it makes for pretty tame and uninspiring viewing.

It's a shame that accomplished actor Bochner is so wasted in this tripe (which looks like it might have been a pilot for a prospective series), because his character's motivation could have evoked more feeling and complexity, given his role in the storyline. Newmar, a great comedienne (and attractive, statuesque beauty) doesn't get any material to showcase her talents, reduced to bouncing about on the floor and looking dim-witted. McDonough's nasal inflexions are sometimes difficult to interpret, and I wished someone would just blow her nose so we could understand the dialogue, although I'm not sure I missed much content.

Mid week TV movie with little to recommend it other than the appeal of Newmar and the presence (for what it's worth) of Bochner. Some vague chuckles, but really, it's pointless and forgettable.

All of the characters are unrealistic, and the dialogue and interaction is what you would expect from an episode of Love Boat. In fact, this TV movie has the same structure as The Love Boat except all the stories take place in a high-rise apartment in L.A. rather than on a ship.

A little corny, yet surprisingly entertaining. Good, real-life drama. Various lifestyle plots melded into a realistic west coast world. A recommended "watch" if you enjoy 70's cinema.