LOVE WITH THE PROPER STRANGER

Critique by Kat Pulzone

This movie, B&W (it couldn’t be filmed in color and retain the seriousness of the plot) is one of the best movies made of a young Italian man named Rocky Papasano (Steve McQueen). Rocky is somewhat of a free spirited play-boy musician living with his girlfriend played by Edie Adams, who after one of his gigs, has a one nighter with the young innocent Italian woman Angie Rossini (Natalie Wood). They never see each other again until weeks later, Angie goes to the musician’s union hall in Manhattan where they all show up daily looking for jobs and has Rocky paged from the stage. Rocky doesn’t really remember her (you assume he must have been intoxicated) but she tells him the shocking news that she’s pregnant and asks for help in finding a doctor to perform an abortion (illegal in those days). A tough situation because Rocky has to ask his girlfriend for help finding a doctor. Angie is from a family of three brothers who operate a produce delivery truck and a high-strung dramatic widowed mother. Angie, a clerk in the pet department in Macy’s in Herald Square gets picked up every day for lunch and after work in her brother’s produce truck (which she hates), so they can keep a tight rein on protecting her.

Eddie Adams is great giving McQueen her opinion of the situation and gives McQueen a name and address. He’s really a nice guy and Edie finds herself helping out. The scene at the abandoned building on a windy deserted street as they wait for the contact is chilling. After meeting the “contact”, he’s told they need another $50 and McQueen has to hand over the $400. With no other financial option, he goes to his parents. The scenes dealing with McQueen finding his parents playing bocce with their neighborhood Italian friends indicates that they have become accustomed to seeing their son on rare occasions, usually when he needs money. The tension is visible as they try to hide the reason for being there and racing the clock to meet the “doctor” on time. Her suffocating brothers hire a ten year old street kid to spy on her when the older brother spots McQueen meeting her in Macy’s the day before and follows them to the bocce courts. They spot her brother’s truck pull up and they run through alleys and over roofs to an old Italian run upholstery building that Rocky knew most of his life and they wait and finally talk.

When it’s safe, they try to be inconspicuous as they go to an empty building and the terrified Angie and Rocky walk upstairs to the door where the doctor is waiting. Natalie Wood is outstanding (her finest performance) as Angie. Here’s a girl, in the 1960’s facing a life altering decision, possibly a butcher who could kill her. You will get so caught up this gripping drama, that it is hard to imagine that it also has comedy throughout the movie. Steve McQueen is just fabulous. It’s a rarity when two actors can say as much through facial expressions as they do verbally like McQueen and Wood. This is also Tom Bosley’s first movie and he’s terrific, Herschel Bernardi, Angie’s older brother Dominic is superb, as is the entire cast. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Best picture, best director, best actor, actress, supporting role nominations and too many awards to mention – you must see this movie. You will watch it more than once.