A couple of years ago, when I was too sick to work and spending a lot of late night hours watching
old Richard Grieco television shows and movies,
A Vow to Kill was one of the films I went looking for. As you probably know, Richard has been in a lot of sci-fi/quasi-horror films, and that's not really my thing. He was even in a movie about giant spiders, which is definitely more than I could cope with.
But, he was also in a handful of television movies in which he played a very bad husband:
one abusive,
one rapist, one who pretended to kidnap his wife in order to extract ransom from her wealthy father.
A Vow to Kill is the ransom movie, but I couldn't find it. That wasn't a big surprise, given that it was a television movie from 1995. It was more of a surprise when I ran across it on Amazon recently. Clearly, it didn't just become available--especially since it only exists on VHS.
I liked it.
That's not much of a review, I know, but that's the upshot. If you were watching made for television movies in the mid-90s, you pretty much know what to expect. In terms of plot line and acting, it's just okay and fairly predictable--just like nearly all of the prime time movies from the 80s and 90s.
It's easy to see how Grieco's character is able to con, seduce and marry the rich man's daughter--these were his prime romantic lead days and this movie was a great vehicle for the soft voice and soulful looks that make a woman say, "Ah, what's a little ransom demand?"
If you're a Richard Grieco fan and haven't seen this movie (and you own a VHS player), it's worth adding to your collection--especially if you're the kind of fan who appreciates his eye and his smile at least as much as his acting. The main Amazon listing has a pretty discouraging price ($45), but look a little further--there are several used copies available for less than $10.
