Ma femme a disparu

I thought this was a pretty good TV movie. I had already seen "One of My Wives Is Missing" with Jack Klugman and James Franciscus, so I had a pretty good idea of what was about to happen next. Even with that it was an enjoyable movie, although "One of My Wives Is Missing" was better.

Elliott Gould in "Vanishing Act", reminds me somewhat of his performance in the excellent "The Silent Partner". His character in both films seems to be grossly underestimated. The acting here is totally acceptable, and the Levinson - Link "Columbo" writing influence is fairly obvious. I am not sure if the intricate plot will hold up to close scrutiny, but the movie is enjoyable. The mountainous ski resort location is not taken advantage of at all, and as another reviewer has mentioned, the limited sets smack of the TV budget. All that being said, a non obvious script is the strong point here, and it will not disappoint those looking for the unexpected. - MERK

In the Rocky Mountains, Harry Kenyon (Mike Farrell) seeks out his missing wife Chris Kenyon in the Winter Parade. Harry meets Lieutenant Rudameyer (Elliott Gould) and tells that he is from San Francisco and has just married Chris, who is from Philadelphia, in Las Vegas. They traveled to the Rockies in honeymoon and they had an argument on the previous day and Chris left their isolate cabin driving her car. Harry also tells that he is worried with her disappearance since she is not a good driver.

Harry returns to his cabin and receives a phone call from the local priest, Father Macklin (Fred Gwynne), who summons him to go to the church. Father Macklin tells that Chris (Margot Kidder) is in the church waiting for him. When Harry sees Chris, he tells that she is not his wife; but the woman knows details of their lives and Harry is discredited by the evidences. Is a stranger impersonating Chris or is Harry delusional?

"Vanishing Act" is one of my favorite movies ever and very difficult to be found. I saw this movie in the 80's, borrowed on VHS from a video rental, and since then I have not had the chance to see it again. The VHS is rare; it was inexplicably not released on DVD or Blu-Ray; and is not available for download. Yesterday I found a Youtube with "Vanishing Act" divided in three parts and that was the chance to see it again.

"Vanishing Act" has a top-notch screenplay, with several plot points and the truth is only disclosed in the last scene. Elliott Gould has one of his best performances in the role of the witty New Yorker Lieutenant Rudameyer and Joel Cohen built in "Fargo" the character Marge Gunderson performed by Frances McDormand that recalls the cool behavior of Rudameyer. Margot Kidder is very gorgeous and Fred Gwynne is very funny. Mike Farrell gives credibility to his character and makes the viewer sympathize with his situation. Maybe I have exaggerated a little giving a ten to this movie, but I really love it and I believe it will please any viewer. My vote is ten.

Title (Brazil): Not Available

Levinson and Link, the Columbo and McCloud guys threw together this modern mystery and it's too bad (that it's thrown together), because the story is quite marvelous, actually.

The film suffers from limited locations and characters. The casting is TV-Movie all the way with Mike Farrell, Margot Kidder, and Eliott Gould getting the bulk of the screen time. Fred Gwynne (don't we all love Fred Gwynne?) does a nice turn in a smaller role..

If you make it through the first 20 minutes of needless expanse, you'll wonder into an interesting little mystery with plenty of surprises.

Well worth watching on a rainy afternoon.

This movie begs us not to depend on appearances-the events in this film are not what they seem to be! Nor are all the people are who they say they are!! And $750.000 is at stake!!

I learned a lesson from reading Agatha Christie books-and I think it applies to this movie: If you suspect the person who is least likely to be suspected then he(or she)is likely to be guilty and, take whatever appears to be the truth-believe the opposite-then you are likely to come to the truth!!!