Wizard-8
Made just before the Disney company started its own adult movie division (Touchstone Films), "Trenchcoat was one of several movies the company made in a desperate attempt to change the image of its product while trying to appeal to both adults and kids. Despite the great effort, the end result is a complete misfire. The script is the greatest offender - it is a deadly mix of tired clichés (like when the heroine kills a bad guy but the body disappears when she goes for the police), stupid characters, and a really slow moving (and predictable) plot. The insulting script might explain why the cast doesn't really give any effort to try and liven things up - Margot Kidder is abrasive and annoying, and Robert Hays is vanilla bland. And under the direction of Michael Tuchner, the entire enterprise feels not only very subdued, but cheap and tacky despite the studio filming on location in Malta. The acting careers of the two leads never recovered from this embarrassment, and it's easy to see why.
atlasmb
The descriptors "simple" and "uninspired" apply to both this film and its title. It's the story of a stenographer who flies to Malta to write a mystery noir novel during her two week vacation. While there, she inadvertently comes into contact with nefarious elements.Unfortunately, "Trenchcoat" has no charm, no intrigue, no artistic value. Margot Kidder--playing the wannabe writer--looks like she is doing a walk-through. Reportedly she did not get along with the director.The direction and everything else about the film feels amateurish. The only thing that could make it worse would be a laugh track. The main problem is the script, which offers very little that is original. Its main approach seems to be putting the "heroine" in dangerous circumstances and having her lament that no one believes her. Not funny, unless maybe the actress is someone who is intrinsically funny.Avoid this stinker.
bentleyray
I saw this film many years ago and loved it immensely...much better than the current "Stranger than Fiction" which follows a similar theme. My question now is, "When is it coming out on DVD???" This is one film I would purchase in a flash and I'm a bit disappointed that it has not yet been released on DVD and even the VHS release has been out of print, so to speak, for many years. Time to write Disney again! The coupling of Margot Kidder and Robert Hays is brilliant and the intrigue is captivating. The tension builds when Kidder's "novel" ends up in police evidence files and is taken literally but all along the banter between hers and Hays' roles is delightful. A definite keeper!
Hollywood_Yoda
I think that putting this movie under the Disney label even with controversy surrounding it was a good move. That is just what the studio needed at a time when people were straying away from the usual cutsie "Disney" movies, like "The Rescuers"(1977), or even "petes Dragon"(1977) for that matter. This is more of an adult centered film, and that is what makes it special. Parents will enjoy this film more than their kids. But any children watching this film under about the age of 12 or 13, SHOULD have parental guidance, because the film does have some suggestive content. Over all, I gave it 8/10, mostly for the story line and character situations. It was GOOD!!!
AD
