Plantiana Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

Skunkyrate Gripping story with well-crafted characters

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

Paynbob It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

valeripaxtonsteele I am not sure if this is the right movie, so this may or may not be a spoiler-type of question. Is this the one where a body is in a crate of some kind and Ruth Gordon chops off his foot because it is sticking out? I have vague memories from when I was a kid, and if, indeed, that is this particular film, I loved it! Thanks in advance for your help!

MartinHafer "What's WRONG with him?! He's nuts...that's what wrong with him!"The acting and much of "Isn't It Shocking?" is quite good...it's too bad there is also a HUGE plothole and a particularly goofy murder weapon! You see this murder weapon in the opening scene, as an older man uses a homemade defibrillator to kill his victims! Talk about making this overly complicated!! He could have killed them with a gun...or even a frying pan...but a defibrillator?! What makes it even funnier is that despite this, the cops and coroner chalk these deaths up to heart attacks! Considering the killer didn't use a conductor (like KY Jelly) there would have been burn marks on the dead...but there weren't and I think the writer should done their homework. Plus, even if this possible....the method seemed so bizarrely overly complicated it made me laugh! But again, the film IS very good in places and I really liked Alan Alda in the lead as the sheriff...which is also a bit funny in light of his longtime hatred of guns. Worth seeing...provided you don't think too much as you watch.

The_Void I've found, after seeing a dozen or so of them, that made for TV seventies horror flicks are generally good for seventy minutes of entertainment. This one looked really good considering the comments about it, so I hoped that I'd be in for one of the better ones; however, that wasn't the case. It's not that this is a bad film, but it's not all that good either and certainly isn't one of the better made for TV movies from the seventies that I've seen. The plot is interesting enough, and focuses on a small town where a bunch of old people are dying. There are certain similarities between the deaths, and it leads Sheriff Dan Barnes (Alan Alda) to investigate. The plot plods along at a relaxing pace, and there's not a great deal of suspense or interest, which is a bit of a surprise since director John Badham would go on to make the very suspenseful thriller 'Nick of Time'...though that was twenty two years later. The small town setting provides a good place for the film to take place, but this isn't taken advantage of to any notable extent, and the film simply boils down to a simple ending. Overall, this film isn't terrible; but it's not great either, and I can't really recommend bothering to track it down.

a_l_i_e_n There have been a number of excellent films about murder and mayhem occurring in small towns. "They Only Kill Their Masters, "Sherlock Holmes & The Scarlet Claw", "Winter Kills", and "Five Card Stud" come to mind, and this 1973 ABC movie-of-the-week has got to be one of the very best ever made.An increase in the death rate among the older residents of a small New England community is initially labeled as being due to natural causes. But something about it doesn't feel right to Daniel Barnes, the local chief of police. Barnes, (excellently played by Alan Alda) refuses to believe the official findings and begins an investigation to prove there's something rotten going on in his little town. The excellent supporting cast includes Will Geer as a nicotine addicted coroner, Louise Lasser of "Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman" fame as the police station's wise-cracking receptionist, and Ruth Gordon cast to type as a dotty old lady who may be in danger of becoming the next senior to sign off. Directed by John Badham of "WarGames" fame, the film maintains a superb balance between both the story's darker aspects and the folksy charm of the familial setting and characters. The method of murder alluded to in the movie's title is refreshingly unique and the film's tense climax features some surprising character revelation. There's even an action-packed car chase that, appropriate to the film's setting, takes place in a corn field. Lane Slate's script is as funny as it is intriguing, and he clearly has a great feel for small town characters. The undeclared courtship between Alda and his receptionist, Lasser, is particularly fun to watch as they joke and natter away about bird watching and other mundane things because neither is willing to risk declaring to the other their true feelings. It's as endearing as it is amusing and the chemistry between these two actors is remarkable. David Shire's score effectively captures the feel of the rural setting while injecting the right note of menace to reflect the darker and at times melancholy aspects of the story.ABC Movies Of The Week were quickly shot and a mere 90 minutes in length, but for some reason the 2 hour TV-movies we get today seldom approach the quality of a little classic like this, and that truly is shocking.