Watched: September 26 2025

Director: Noel Black

Starring: Anthony Perkins, Tuesday Weld, Beverly Garland, John Randolph, Dick O’Neill, Clarice Blackburn

Year: 1968

Runtime: 1h 29min

Dennis Pitt (Perkins) is released from the psych ward where he has been treated for “dangerous fantasies.” Foreshadowing, thy name be… well, “delusional fantasies,” apparently. Deemed ready to rejoin society as a productive member, he promptly starts his new life by creeping on a high school drill team, specifically 17-year-old Sue Ann Stepanek (Weld).

He eventually plucks up the courage to approach her, but not as himself. Oh no, under the guise of being a secret agent – one in need of an assistant on his top secret, not at all fake mission – he tricks her into joining him to expose the environmenal crimes of the factory where he (actually) works. However, he may have bitten over more than he can chew with innocent high schooler Sue Ann.

We went in blind on this one, and we definitely recommend it – this was a wild ride from start to finish. In fact, you may want to watch it before reading this review… Pretty Poison is less well known than several other dark comedies from the era (at least to our knowledge), and it deserves a wider audience. Perkins is disturbingly good at being innocent and creepy at the same time, a perfect Dennis, and Weld is charming, chilling and chaotic as Sue Ann.

To us, it’s unclear how much of his fantasies and lies Dennis actually believes, and how much is just a way to manipulate a high school girl into a relationship with him. Whether or not he believes his own fantasies, we cannot escape the fact that he drugs and rapes Sue Ann, and then convinces his case officer to let him stay after breaking his parole because “he’s in love.” With a child. And that is apparently a good thing. What a world.

Despite the sinister nature of Dennis’ manipulations and actions (regardless of his intentions and possible delusions – his reactions towards the end make us lean towards him being a manipulator and complusive liar rather than a mentally ill man who actually believes his own stories), things are not quite what they seem, and the twists and shifts in power dynamics make this a movie worth watching. The increasingly atonal march that keeps playing throughout the movie is a great illustration of Dennis’ breaking psyche, and we loved both their performances, Sue Ann’s car, Dennis’ landlady Mrs Bronson (Blackburn), and the dark humour which occasionally made us laugh out loud. Overall, a great watch.

What we learned: Don’t be fooled by a pretty face. Or a clearly fake cover story of spies and secret agents… And for god’s sake – don’t let your unstable, delusional ex-patients break all the rules of their parole because they enter a relationship with a minor! That is not a good sign!

MVP: Mrs Bronson. We just enjoyed her whole vibe. Or Sue Ann. What a ride!

Next time: Rosemary’s Baby (1968)