Already feeling like your going to die a lone, this movie just propels that feeling. Fear of Marriage? Concerned about going to Match.com cause you’d meet a serial killer? Well, this movie just add those two fears. Director and writer Leonard Kastle takes Martha Beck (Shirley Stoler) a victim of Ray Fernandez (Tony Lo Bianco) to be a lover, partner, and killer. Yes, that did escalated quickly.
Martha is terrifying. She has an over barring mother who wants her to get married so she begins exchanging letter with Ray Fernandez who his mother set her up with on this letter exchange. Martha falls fast and hard. It’s easy to see this might be the first man to ever show any interest. When Ray goes back to his home after they meet the first week end she constantly calls him and wants to see him. SUPER needed! However Ray stays with her and they move in together. Ray wants to continue his day job though. Martha joins with as his sister.
Let’s reflex on this twisted idea for a second. Yes, I will go along with you to get close to this lonely women with money, manipulate them, and take convince them to give you their money for a marriage blessing. She becomes almost a driving force in the scenarios. Sure Ray is the one actually leading them on, but she’s crazy. If I haven’t made that point clear lets have this scene show it. Warning it’s a spoiler. The second women that Martha and Ray travel to leaves by the water. The scene starts with Martha being left to shore while Ray goes swimming with the women. Ray is slightly flirting with the girl, but this is job correct? Martha can’t handle so throws a tantrum and goes in past where she can swim. Martha almost drowns before Ray comes out and rescues her. When they reach a point where they both can stand they have a tender moment, a little too tender for siblings.
The women is obviously uncomfortable and that ends that moment. Even with all this dysfunctional relationship, lying, stealing, and manipulation Ray and Martha dearly care for one another. It is one example of a loving relationship. Do I recommend it? No.
This film is based on a true story. Does is seem to exploit the relationship of the couple? No. To be direct about it at least. The writer was telling this story as it happened focusing on the relationship between Ray and Martha. Without showing it from the perspective of Martha you would not have been able to pity her like you did. The moments where she whined and threw tantrums you would just want to hit her. She’s an adult. However the story begins with showing her life and you feel bad for her. Ray is seen as a bad guy you can’t stand. Ray’s a jerk basically.
As the relationship continues you see they both do really love each other. It’s a little strange but they are both there for each other and the other person comes first in their life. It is sweet to see. Although the moment that was too much to handle would be the ending when they used Myrtle Young (Marilyn Chris). She was the sweetest old lady. Martha bullied her and Ray pushed her to sign her $10,000 over to him. Myrtle become concerned about this and starts thinking correcting and can’t sleep because of not know where her checks are or why she signed them over to a man she just meet the day before.
Martha cannot handle Martha and tells her to stop but the situation escalates. Ray comes up in the commotion and it adds to Martha’s hysteria. Ray tells Martha to kill Myrtle. Martha does! The next they are cleaning up the crime scene and it just seems like a normal day. It’s amazing how that scene wasn’t the most horrifying. The final scene is them going to see Myrtle’s daughter and her family! That scene is what showed the sadistic attitude of the characters. It’s unnerving to see that these characters where not simply made up in the writers mind. Ray and Martha were real people who did this. Oh the chills!
