AmateurMovieReviews.com

The 1981 film The Postman Always Rings Twice is a remake of a 1946 movie, which itself was based on a James Cain novel of the same name. So we're dealing with material that is twice removed from its original source, meaning that there were likely significant differences or omissions along the way. Having never read the novel or seen the 1946 version, I was going into this viewing of Postman with no prior knowledge of what I was in for.

The Postman Always Rings Twice opens with a drifter named Frank Chambers (played by Jack Nicholson) trying to hitch a ride to Los Angeles. Frank is clearly an idler and a con man, as evidenced by the way he convinces diner owner Nick Papadakis (John Colicos) to give him a free meal when he (Frank) doesn't have any money. To do this, Frank made up a story on the spot about how he was supposed to go to L.A. to look up some friends and begin work as a machinist. The only problem is, the guy he was riding with took off and grabbed Frank's wallet in the process.

Nick immediately perks up when he hears that Frank is a machinist because he needs a mechanic to take care of the service station that is attached to the diner. He offers Frank a small salary plus room and board in order to forget about Los Angeles and stay on. Frank at first turns down the offer, but after he realizes that he doesn't really have any place better to go he accepts.

The more time Frank spends at the Twin Oaks Diner, the more he lusts after Nick's beautiful, much younger wife Cora (Jessica Lange). The effects of being out in the middle of nowhere probably got to Cora because she is attracted to Frank also, and the two soon give vent to their feelings one day when the husband is away on business.

After awhile, Frank and Cora realize that they want to be together openly without having to sneak around. But that of course means they have to get rid of Nick. The two scheme together to plan Nick's murder, but they completely mess up the execution of the plan. Nick doesn't die, so Frank and Cora are right back where they started from. Although Cora tries to break it off, she knows deep down that she could never be content with Nick now. So they try a different murder plan, which ends up working.

The rest of the film then deals with the aftermath of Nick's murder. With Frank and Cora, nothing ever works out smoothly, so there are cops to deal with, a trial, shady lawyers and assistants, insurance company representatives, etc. It seems that everyone is out to make sure that Frank and Cora don't end up together.

On the whole, I found the major plotline of The Postman Always Rings Twice to be extremely disturbing. There wasn't a single redeeming quality in either Frank or Cora, so I was basically spending two hours of my time with lying, scheming murderers. It wasn't a comfortable experience at all, which is probably what the filmmakers intended.

One of the biggest problems I had with this movie was accepting Jack Nicholson as the Frank. He looked so scummy, dirty, and untrustworthy in his role that I didn't for one second believe that a woman like Cora would be interested in him, that she could "love" him so much that she would risk going to the gallows for him. That point wasn't sufficiently addressed by the script, in my opinion.

Another point that the screenwriters chose to avoid was the question of how a woman like Cora ended up being married to a man like Nick in the first place. Nick wasn't attractive at all, was much older than Cora, and wasn't even particularly nice to her. It didn't make sense that she would be with him, and yet there she was. This bothered me a great deal when I was watching the movie because I just couldn't figure it out.

These problems, along with the rather abrupt ending, made me feel that the 1981 version of The Postman Always Rings Twice wasn't as good of a film as it could have been. If you skip this one, you won't be missing out on too much.