It's easy to understand how attractive it must have seemed to make a 1980s movie of "The Postman Always Rings Twice". James M Cain's famous depression-era melodrama had already been successful as a book (1934) and a movie (1946) and a 1980s version could obviously benefit from the advantages of being made in colour and at a time when censorship constraints would be far less strict than they had been in 1946. The result is a production in which this story of lust, adultery, murder, blackmail and "the hand of fate" is told in a style which is far more raw, gritty and explicit than the 1946 movie.Frank Chambers (Jack Nicholson) is a drifter who stops for a meal at a remote countryside diner / filling station somewhere outside L.A. and decides to stay a little longer after catching sight of the establishment's attractive cook called Cora (Jessica Lange). Cora's the wife of Nick (John Colicos) who's the considerably older Greek proprietor of the business. Nick offers Frank a job as a mechanic and soon Cora and Frank are involved in a passionate affair.After the couple fail in an attempt to run away together, they decide to murder Nick. They succeed at the second attempt but soon Cora is put on trial for the crime. The prosecuting attorney succeeds in getting Frank to betray Cora but some slick work by her lawyer results in her being acquitted. After the trial, Frank and Cora resume their relationship and a succession of surprising developments culminate in a tragic conclusion.Frank is a man whose misfortunes don't simply emanate from his weakness or the consequences of making a wrong turn in his life. He's a violent, petty criminal who's driven by lust, but nevertheless, seems more in control of his destiny than is typical of a noir protagonist. In this version of the story, in an interpretation which is probably more realistic, he's more cynical and brutal than John Garfield's 1946 incarnation and as a result is a far more unsympathetic character.Jessica Lange's Cora is also different from Lana Turner's as she seems much too strong and spirited to be as trapped as she claims and also doesn't have the kind of mystique or ambiguity which makes it seem credible that she could've been harbouring dark thoughts about killing Nick for some time.The ways in which the characters of Frank and Cora have been changed is interesting to watch but the same can't be said of the changed ending which lacks both the irony of the original and its significance to the story's title.This movie is strong on atmosphere and intensity and convincingly evokes the period in which the action is set. Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange are excellent in their roles and the supporting cast (particularly John Colicos) is also very good.

Eroticizing the tale of two killers previously made in 1946, director Bob Rafelson took out the subtlety and innuendo that made the original so hot. By adding sadomasochistic sexual activity between Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange, he cheapens the story that could have been an interesting pulp fiction update of James M. Cain's story. In the original, John Garfield and Lana Turner really did have heat that didn't need to show the audience what the two did in bed. Their power burnt through the screen, but if there is any steam between Nicholson and Lange, sadly it is only dry ice, not timbers smoldering.Nicholson, then one of the hottest actors in Hollywood, plays an obvious sleaze-bag. His character is never likable which dissolves any sympathy towards him. Garfield played the role as a victim of circumstances with a past which made him more interesting and complex. Lange, however, does provide some heat, and shows the potential of becoming one of the biggest stars of the 80's after a weak start in the 1976 remake of "King Kong". She lacks Lana Turner's glamour (and the famous white shorts and halter top with matching turban), but making her more earthy adds a different dimension to her character that Nicholson's lacks.Rather than a Cecil Kellaway type as the cheated-on husband, the producers added a more ethnic flavor to the character played by veteran character actor John Colicos. The same year he made this movie, he made soap immortality as the evil Mikkos Cassadine, the world's wealthiest Greek, on "General Hospital". On the soap, he victimized the world. Here, he plays a lower class Greek who married a younger woman. Unlike Kellaway, the age difference isn't grandfatherly, and works better. Michael Lerner is very good as the attorney who defends Nicholson and Lange for murder, and a young Anjelica Houston is seen briefly as a circus owner involved with Nicholson. She utilizes the same accent she would later perfect in the hysterical "The Witches".What really makes a color version of the story work is the not-so-sharp photography that really makes it look like a pulp fiction magazine come to life. The ending drags a bit, but it is ironic to watch the two characters slowly destroy themselves and each other. That's what film noir is all about.

Disappointing is the first word that comes to mind after sitting through this sexed-up noir remake of a 1946 film of the same name based on a popular novel. This critic has neither seen the original, nor read that novel, so he is forced to take this film on face value and evaluate it on its own merits. That said, The Postman Always Rings Twice failed to come close to my expectations. You won't care a lick about drifter Jack Nicholson and bored housewife Jessica Lange who start a torrid love affair behind the back of her husband, and then look to kill him off. These two amoral jerks are all dressed up with nowhere to go in this script, and once the deed is done, the story really jumps the tracks. This was an intriguing premise, but the many talented people who made this film have all done much better things.The biggest selling point for this film was its steamy sex scenes, and there are indeed a few. But something is missing. Something that should be fairly obvious to those of us who have had sex in our lives. Nobody is ever nude during them! Save for one brief scene where we see Nicholson's rear, there is a jarring lack of nudity. At times these people seem to be having intercourse right through their clothes! I've heard Nicholson is a legendary lover, but is he strong enough to.... I'll stop there. What happened? I'm sure they at least negotiated with Lange about perhaps a topless scene or something. I guess she said no. Look, one does not need nudity for a sexy scene. The only interesting scene in Random Hearts is a testament to that. But when you advertise your picture as a steamy, sexy thriller, you pretty much have to go all in, or the whole thing is a waste.Aside from the sex scenes, this film seems confused about what its characters are supposed to do once the husband is out of the way. And the conclusion is so abrupt, its almost like they ran out of money and just decided to kill one of the leads off and call it a wrap. The acting isn't bad, but thats about all the film has going for it. Lange is her typical self... not great, but not bad either. Nicholson is born to play this type of character, and he doesn't disappoint. You may remember John Collicos from TV's Battlestar Galactica. Angelical Huston is on hand for a cameo that they probably just gave her when she was hanging around the set to be close to her main squeeze Nicholson. This film is really just a waste of your time when you consider all of the better pictures these people have made. Avoid it. 4 of 10 stars. And what does the title have to do with the movie, anyway? The Hound.

Adulterous lovers, avarice and cold-blooded murder propel the ambitious 1981 remake pf "The Postman Always Rings Twice" with Jack Nicholson as the knockabout drifter and Jessica Lange as the roadside diner dame who conspire to kill her older husband. "Five Easy Pieces" director Bob Rafelson and playwright-turned-scenarist David Mamet stoke the sensual fires between Nicholson and Lange in this sexually charged rehash. When Nicholson and Lange come together, they grope each other like lusty animals in throes of passionate fury. The scene in the kitchen where Jack takes Jessica on table sprinkled with flour dust makes it clear that the Rafelson remake wants to treat the material with greater realism. Moreover, this beautifully lensed and produced melodrama never stoops to prurience. Even during the kitchen table scene, our leads never display their private body parts for our greater amusement. Jessica Lange does not have a wardrobe malfunction. Later, he shows Jack indulging in cunnilingus. In another shot, Nicholson is shown sprawled across a bed belly down with his buttocks bared. The ending differs drastically from the 1946 version. Surprisingly, Nicholson's character, who committed murder, gets away with it.In most instances, the 1981 remake follows the 1946 American original. This example of neo-noir appears to be set a little earlier in time than the 1946 version. This time around Frank Chambers (Jack Nicholson of "Chinatown") hitches a ride with a salesman (Christopher Lloyd) to a roadside gas station/diner owned by Nick Papadakos (John Colicos of "Raid on Rommel"), but he pretends that the salesman stole his money and left him high and dry. Nick gives Frank a job as a mechanic. Like the M-G-M version, this movie shows the hero and heroine as they try to kill Nick when he is bathing. Of course, a poor cat dies when it tampers with a fuse box and gets fried. Nick recovers from this accident, but he isn't so lucky with the other accident. Frank and Cora get him drunk and then take him up into the mountains and topple the car off the mountain side. Initially, neither of them believes that the sedan looks appropriately smashed up enough. Frank climbs into the vehicle and his additional weight sends the automobile crashing down the mountain. The district attorney constitutes as the closet thing to a villain, but District Attorney Sackett (as played here by William Traylor) does not haunt the periphery like Leon Ames did in the M-G-M version. Sackett intimidates Frank and convinces him to sign a confession. Later, Cora's attorney, Mr. Katz (Michael Lerner of "Outlaw Blues") pleads Cora guilty and gets her to spill the beans to one of his own men, Mr. Kennedy (John P. Ryan of "The Missouri Breaks"), who is masquerading as the district attorney's assistant. Cora calms down once she understands what Katz has done. The slippery Katz works out a negotiation between the two insurance companies involved in the car accident. He gets Cora off with probation and Frank is clean. Cora's mother dies and she has to leave the diner. Frank shuts the place down and hitches a ride with a trucker delivering big cats to a circus. Frank has a fling with Madge. The scenes with Angela Huston's lion tamer is a major departure. When Cora comes back from her mother's funeral, Frank picks her up and takes her home. She surprises him with news that she is carrying his child. Not surprisingly, Kennedy tries to blackmail them and Frank roughs him up. While Frank is getting the copy of the confession that Kennedy stole from Katz, Cora discover Frank's infidelity. She points out to Frank that she cannot be tried from the same crime. However, he can be tried for Nick's murder. Frank catches Cora making a phone and fears that she may be ratting him out to Sackett. After a passage of time, Frank announces that he wants to marry Cora, but she believes that he only wants to shut her up. In the 1946 version, Cora's attorney, Mr. Keats, persuaded Frank and Cora to get married so that Sackett could not prosecute them on a moral charges of living together out of wedlock. Frank and Cora tie the knot. Cora feels ill and Frank takes her home. During that trip, Frank swerves to avoid a collision with a truck and Cora falls out of the car into the road. Frank smashes into a road sign. When he gets to Cora, he finds her dead and weeps in tragedy. Rafelson's version is less literal, too. Rafelson and Mamet emphasize ethnicity in the Greek proprietor Nick, who owns the diner where our heroine slings hash, and the ending does not put Frank on death row.Everything visual about "The Postman Always Rings Twice" looks opulent. Acclaimed lenser Sven Nykvist, who photographed some of Ingmar Bergman's best films, steeps us in the detail of the period and imparts a spontaneity to each moment. The production values are solid and atmospheric; production designer George Jenkins makes you believe that it is the Depression Era 1930s. The car crash scene looks exemplary. Despite all of the stellar things going for this remake, "The Postman Always Rings Twice" rings hollow. Rafelson paces the film well enough so that it does not wear out its welcome or stall along stretches. Altogether, the Rafelson film does not overshadow the 1946, Tay Garnett-directed M-G-M feature with Lana Turner and John Garfield, but it is an above-average opus.