"The Dain Curse" (1978) TV mini-series

User Rating:

6.4/10   

Director:

E.W. Swackhamer

Writers:

Dashiell Hammett (novel)
Robert W. Lenski (writer)

Release Date:

22 May 1978 (USA)

Genre:

Mystery

Plot:

Private eye investigates diamond theft, and becomes involved with an ancient family curse.

Plot Keywords:

TV Mini-Series | Private Detective | Based On Novel

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Primetime Emmys. Another 1 win

Cast

James Coburn	...	Hamilton Nash
Hector Elizondo	...	Ben Feeney
Jason Miller	...	Owen Fitzstephan
Jean Simmons	...	Aaronia Haldorn
Paul Stewart	...	The old man
Beatrice Straight	...	Alice Dain Leggett
Nancy Addison	...	Gabrielle Leggett
Tom Bower	...	Sgt. O'Gar
David Canary	...	Jack Santos
Beeson Carroll	...	Marshall Cotton
Martin Cassidy	...	Eric Collinson
Brian Davies	...	Tom Vernon
Roni Dengel	...	Daisy Cotton
Paul Harding	...	Mr. Leggett
Karen Ludwig	...	Maria Gross

Also Known As:

"Dashiell Hammett's 'The Dain Curse'"

Runtime:

360 min | Germany:280 min (4 episodes)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Iceland:16

Filming Locations:

Easton, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Martin Poll Productions

Great Mini-Series, But the video contains less than Half the original.

I'm not surprised other reviewers found this mini-series confusing if they watched this video version: it has over half the scenes cut from it. The original series ran over four nights at six hours. Minus the commercial time, it clocks in at just over 4 1/2 hours. This video release is only 2 hours, 17 minutes long (despite the fact that the box says 193 minutes!)

In it's original form, it's a near masterpiece of mood, style, and suspense with a terrific cast. Every time you think the mystery has been solved, a new mystery begins. And unlike most mystery movies today, when you finally arrive at the end and learn who the real villain is, it all makes perfect sense.

So if you ever have a chance to catch it on some cable station, or if the DVD ever comes out, don't miss it. But skip the ripoff video!