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Monday, January 14, 2019

Baffled! (1972)

Starring Leonard Nimoy, Susan Hampshire, Rachel Roberts, Vera Miles, Jewel Blanch
Directed by Philip Leacock
(actor & director credits courtesy IMDB.com)

After a race car driver confesses to having witnessed mental visions on the track, he's tracked down by a British expert in the occult, who warns that he needs to act on his visions to save lives.

This British telefilm, per Wikipedia was considered as a pilot for a television series, and it's a shame a series never materialized, because it's an awful lot of fun.  Nimoy plays the very affable racer Tom Kovack,  and has great chemistry with Hampshire, as the two team up to investigate a British manor house from his vision, and have great adventures together exposing the evil hidden within.  Familiar Hitchcock leading lady Miles plays a celebrated actress also staying at the manor with her daughter whose behavior begins to change rather frighteningly.  Highlights include a vision where Nimoy falls into an ocean, a chase sequence in which he pursues a kidnapper in an old English roadster, and Nimoy and Hampshire investigating secret passages within the manor.  Although there's some pretty sinister evildoers, the overall tone is very light, with an eclectic score from Richard Hill ranging from elegant melodies to 1970s funk.  The closing of the film sets up another "episode," although sadly it's one we'll never get to see.  

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