Mrs. Snow, also known as Aunt Addie, is so rich she has a walk-in safe. She is a kind, pleasant lady played by the excellent Patricia Collinge, but she doesn't really care for her niece Lorna's brand new husband Bruce. He is played by the excellent Don Chastain, who never achieved quite the stardom people had anticipated -- he is a talented actor with a strong presence and chiseled, photogenic features, but luck and timing play their part. New wife and niece Lorna is played by Jessica Walters, beautiful of course, but always a little strong of jaw to be playing 1960's ingénues. This viewer enjoyed cocktails with Ms. Walters many decades ago, and of course she was very pleasant, but nothing could erase the indelible impression she made in her performance as frigid, bitchy Libby in "The Group," also made around this time. But back to Mrs. Snow, who finds herself in a claustrophobic situation thanks to the evil Bruce. As her ordeal unfolds, she is given to soliloquies that are delivered persuasively to her cat. These scenes are artfully handled, and Patricia Collinge pulls the viewer into sharing her mounting panic. This is neatly juxtaposed with scenes of sophisticated couples enjoying a stylish cocktail party, blissfully unaware of poor Mrs. Snow's ongoing ordeal. These scenes are also sharply photographed, and you may enjoy the 1960's cocktail dresses on display. It's all very chic, but it ends too abruptly, on a note of sudden revelation. That's all very arty, of course, but we really want the cathartic scene where we see what happens to Bruce. Nevertheless, this is one of the best written, best acted and best directed episodes of the series.
Review of The Ordeal of Mrs. Snow
