Synopsis
A wounded criminal and his dying partner take refuge at an old beachfront fortress. The owner of the fortress and his young wife, initially unwilling hosts, quickly experience their relationship with the criminal shift in a humorous and bizarre fashion.
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Cast
- Lionel StanderRichard
- Donald PleasenceGeorge
- Françoise DorléacTeresa
- Jack MacGowranAlbie
- Iain QuarrierChristopher
- Jacqueline BissetJacqueline
- Renée HoustonChristopher's Mother
- William FranklynCecil
- Geoffrey SumnerChristopher's Father
- Robert DorningPhilip Fairweather
Recommendations
- 100
Empire
Shades of Pinter and Beckett are affectionately retouched with dark humour, dynamic wordplay and a tension all Kubrick's. - 88
Chicago Reader
Roman Polanski's second British film is a mean little absurdist comedy set on a remote Northumberland island; it's also one of the best and purest of all his works. - 83
The A.V. Club
Cul-de-sac functions better as an affectionate goof on Waiting For Godot, enhanced by an unforgettable setting that naturally severs the trio from contact with the outside world. - 75
Chicago Sun-Times
Pleasence, in a role that requires him to run sideways most of the time with his head at a crooked angle, is hilarious and frightening as a man going mad, and the film has an eerie appeal. - 75
Slant Magazine
Cul-de-Sac remains a searing reminder that Roman Polanski’s idiosyncratic grasp of the human mind was once evinced theatrically, rather than through narrative ferocity. - 75
TV Guide Magazine
Neat little chiller with Polanski honing his abilities as a director and standout performances from Pleasence, Stander, and Dorleac. - 70
Time Out
If the subject matter is bleak and bitterly serious, the tone throughout is darkly comic, while the precise imagery effortlessly conveys the tension, the claustrophobia, and the madness of the situation. - 60
CineVue
A flawed film to be sure, but one with flashes of inspiration, occasionally stunning visuals and a Shakespearean sense of claustrophobia.
