Secret Ceremony (1968)

(On Cable TV, October 2022) There was a point, maybe fifteen minutes into Secret Ceremony, in which I was still reasonably likely to like the results despite its fluffy cinematography and drawn-out pacing. After all, it has Elizabeth Taylor as a prostitute taken in by a younger woman looking like her dead daughter. It had a young Mia Farrow, thankfully with long hair, acting mysteriously as if there was a big revelation to come. And then, suddenly, there’s Robert Mitchum looking tough and evil. Those elements could have led to something quite good. Alas, that’s not the case—director Joseph Losey seems intent on making fifteen minutes’ worth of preposterous plot last for 110 long minutes, and the entire thing quickly becomes exasperating. There are no real answers here, no narrative certitude, nothing so plebeian as an understandable narrative. It draws itself out through ethereal cinematography, imprecise reference points and casual meanness. All three leads are both miscast and wasted. By the end, I was not even looking for answers any more—I was just glad it was over.