Part
of the problem -- as we’ll see from time
to time on Ghost Story -- is that
the thinner supernatural tales have a difficult time filling out an hour time
slot. I’ve written it before and I’ll
write it again, no doubt, but many of these same stories would work like gangbusters
in a half-hour slot. But at fifty
minutes long, some entries (notably “Elegy for a Vampire,” “The Summer House”
and this episode) prove long, hard slogs; repetitive and dull rather than spiky
and scary. The basic concepts explored –
while sound – seem dull and
predictable when stretched to hour length.
In
“The Concrete Captain,” based on a story by Elizabeth Walter, Ed (Stuart Whitman) and Kate Lucas (Gena Rowlands)
celebrate their tenth wedding anniversary near the coast, when Kate becomes
unexpectedly obsessed (some might say possessed…) with the tragic tale of long-dead
Captain Jonathan Harker (wink, wink, nudge, nudge), a sea captain who came to a
tragic end, and who was thus never reunited with his beloved wife, Katherine
(Eugenia Stewart).
On
a nearby beach, the captain’s body is encased -- unusually -- in concrete between sharp-edged rocks because his body
was unrecoverable at the time of his demise.
Now, the doomed lovers attempt to reach out to one another, but can’t
quite make the right connection.
Kate
feels compelled to visit the captain’s tomb, and to stay at his house, now
converted into a hotel. Meanwhile, the
Captain beckons from his tomb, and Kate makes excursions to the beach,
possessed by Katherine, to reunite with him.
Finally, to save his wife, Ed must shatter the concrete tomb and free
the Captain.
I
try never to use the word “boring” when describing any production, because I believe
strongly that boredom is the personal
result of non-engagement. A movie or TV
isn’t intrinsically boring on its own, in other words. Rather, how we choose to engage (or not
engage…) with the material is our own responsibility.
So
let me just declare that “The Concrete Captain” is dull and repetitive and that
such unfortunate qualities generate a sense of distance (hence, boredom…). The episode again and again depicts Kate
possessed by Katherine, walking to the picturesque beach, until her husband shows
up and rescues her.
Worse than the tiresome repetition, we aren’t truly
certain of the threat’s nature. Is Kate in physical danger from the Captain?
From Katherine? Is she being possessed? If so, for what precise purpose? Why and how, precisely, is Kate in jeopardy?
The
same question applies to the trapped Captain.
We see his spirit (a kind of negative image…) walking about from time-to-time,
so what does he gain by seeing his corporeal form cast into the sea, freed from
concrete? If the Captain and Kate can
both appear as spirits already, and both haunt the premises around the hotel,
why can’t they connect? If the Captain
wants to escape his tomb, why does his ghost attempt to drown Ed in the ocean
Instead
of addressing any such pressing questions, “The Concrete Captain” features
interminable moments of Ed and Kate flirting, kissing, and questioning if
anything is wrong in their marital relationship.
With
no real “evil” supernatural threat here, no purposeful sense of menace and such
a meandering teleplay, “The Concrete Captain” is a time-waster extraordinaire. Unlike the diabolical and dark “The New House”
or the brutal and hair-raising “The Dead You Leave Behind,” this episode of “The
Concrete Captain” seems to possess no pulse or heartbeat.
All
that established, Donner stages at least a few gorgeous shots of Gena Rowlands
at the beach. In a flowing nightgown,
ensconced over the ocean on a high peak, she cuts a fine Gothic figure, to be
certain. I had the distinct honor of interviewing Ms. Rowlands about six years ago, and she's a great actress and a remarkable human being. The camera absolutely loves her in "The Concrete Captain," but I just wish the teleplay gave her more to do than, literally, sleepwalk.
Next
week, a more provocative effort from writer Anthony Lawrence: “At the Cradle
Foot.”
A weak script without major rewrites rarely results in a good episode or film.
ReplyDeleteSGB
I just watched this episode for the first time since the initial run of "Ghost Story" when I was a kid, and it was a major disappointment -- I remembered it being much better and actually sorta spooky. I think the whole concept of the sea captain imprisoned in the rocks and concrete, with the harpoon that "put him out of his misery" still sticking out, was what made me always remember this episode. Sadly, over the intervening 40 years, I'd forgotten the long-winded, rather pointless plot! Definitely one of those shows that never lived up to it's potential.
ReplyDeleteWell, the plot may drag a bit, but it works so well as a ghost story with all the great atmospheric effects: waves crashing, wind blowing, rain gusting, intermittent sun and clouds. There is a mood of "quiet" that runs through the plot, which is believable (e. g., when the ghost of Katherine appears (a quick glance) inside the motel, waking up Whitman, who goes on a search. Or the interesting scene when Rowlands brushes her hair with the antique brush. These are quaint scenes that go appropriately with the setting and the lost-lover-ghosts.
ReplyDeletestill a favorite of mine - a calming story ghost story - of yester year.
ReplyDelete