Cul-De-Sac

A somewhat surreal black comedy directed and co-scripted by Roman Polanski, CUL-DE-SAC is the tale of a mismatched married couple, George and Teresa (Donald Pleasence and Francoise Dorleac), living in an 11th-century castle on an isolated island whose home is invaded by two gangsters on the run after an unsuccessful heist. Lionel Stander plays Dicky, a thug who attempts to save the life of his mortally wounded partner (Jack MacGowran) by enlisting the help of George and Teresa, then holds them captive in their own home as the group awaits the arrival of the mysterious Mr. Kattlebach, the gangsters' boss whom Dicky has contacted prior to cutting the phone line. The nubile young Teresa proves more resourceful than her ever-cringing husband as they try to come up with a plan for eluding their boorish captor; further complications arise, however, after an unexpected visit from an old school chum of George's, who arrives with an entourage of annoying family and friends. In spite of tensions that, as Polanski later reported, existed between him and his often less than cooperative stars, all three principals give fine performances, most notably Pleasence as the cuckolded, humiliated, and (as Dicky at one point proclaims) hopelessly "square" British WWII veteran George.