Main cast: Susan Anspach (Claudia Reynolds), Michael Schoeffling (Lance Hollerfield), Michael Ironside (Sheriff Lee), and Page Fletcher (The Hitchhiker)
Director: Roger Vadim
After some veering off into zany territory, The Hitchhiker goes back on track to Lifetime-with-more-T&A territory with Dead Man’s Curve.
Claudia Reynolds, bestselling author of novels such as A Town Called Gemorrah, finally gets to live out the life of the typical heroine of her stories when she returns to her hometown for her high school reunion. She gets steamy with that guy from Sixteen Candles, but her finding her groove back with a hot, younger man is interrupted by her ex, the jealous Lee that also happens to the sheriff. Lee wants to get back with her, of course, but she’s not interested.
One of those men, or perhaps some other men, who knows, has a creepy stalker shrine dedicated to her. Who is it? Why can’t a woman enjoy a hot fling in peace, anyway?
Michael Schoeffling is very easy on the eyes, and a part of me wonders why he never made it any bigger in the business. He has the swagger of a rebel without a cause, with the dark handsome looks to match… and then he tries to act and I can only go oh yes, that’s why. It’s a shame, though. He could have gone the Michael Paré route and acted in a slew of B-grade flicks, where his lack of thespian skills wouldn’t really matter, and mommy can still enjoy her eye candy, but I guess sometimes things just aren’t meant to be.
Oh yes, since this show is what it is, I have to sadly report that folks will see more of Susan Anspach than Mr Schoeffling here. He just shows his bare chest and that’s basically it, bummer, while Ms Anspach shows off her bare rear end.
As for the episode itself, it’s a huge step backward after the last few episodes. Claudia is a poorly written character that goes from “That man almost killed me! I hate him!” to “Oh, I need to boink him now!” because… women love bad boys and that’s it?
The ever-reliable Michael Ironside can be counted on to play the creepy bad guy, but he’s barely in this one to save the episode.
Indeed, the bulk of the episode focuses on the eye-rolling leap of Claudia from a tired and burned-out writer to a horny horn that ignores all the red flags about her younger studmuffin because, I don’t know, maybe it’s because he’s hot and she’s dumb.
Factor in a last minute “dramatic revelation” that feels more like an ass-pull, and this episode feels more like something they fished out of the reject bin. Probably, they need to make a few more episodes and anything will do, even this cringe fest.
