RETRO MOVIE REVIEW: SECONDS, 1966

SECONDS, 1966. Based on the novel by David Ely. Directed by John Frankenheimer (THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, 1962, RONIN, 1998).

It“s a Hollywood film that feels very independent. Famed Chinese cinematographer James Wong Howe, whose filmmaking expertise extends back to the silent era of cinema, photographed the film brilliantly. Frankenheimer“s direction and Howe’s photographic skills create a familiar yet distorted world, filled with delusions and uncertainty.

The story begins with middle-aged banker Arthur Hamilton, played by character actor John Randolph, who appears to be very unhappy with his existence. Even though he is professionally and financially secure, living in plush house with a devoted wife, he seems to be very dissatisfied. But what if you could change that? What if you could leave it all behind and become somebody different? Would that be the answer that could fix everything? Can you actually be someone else for the rest of your life and be happy?

Hamilton begins to get a series of calls in the middle of the night from a friend of his that died mysteriously. This friend tells Hamilton to take a meeting with a mysterious company who might be able to help him with his dissatisfaction with life. Reluctantly, Hamilton leaves his job in the middle of the day to see if the company actually exists. Initially, what looks like a wild goose chase turns into a visit to a laundromat, which turns into a visit to a meat-packing warehouse, which turns into a dark van ride to a typical nondescript office building.

Hamilton is met by a representative of the company who more or less coerces him into giving up his current existence for a new one. It“s really a dark proposition; the whole operation is financed by existing insurance policies and retirement funds. The company gets paid, the wife and daughter are taken care of, and Hamilton gets his new life. He gets to live where he wants and he gets to choose the profession that he desires.Â Â He will become a “second.”“

Hamilton gets his new life after extensive cosmetic surgery and a psychological re-education. After months of this grueling and painful process, Hamilton turns into Antiochus Wilson, played by Rock Hudson. This is where it gets really interesting because we have basically two actors playing the same character.

Even though Hamilton is now the handsome and successful artist, living in a plush pad on the beach, surrounded by more “seconds,”“ is he really a different person”¦? Deep down, Wilson still has the same hang-ups as Hamilton. It“s too hard for him to adjust. Not only that, Wilson“s continuing dissatisfaction threatens the privacy the company. It can“t be revealed that Wilson is someone else who faked his death and abandoned his family.

Trouble continues to brew as Wilson questions his new existence.Â Â He risks revealing his true identity and the company, so they have to step in to try and diffuse the situation. But, in order for the company to help Wilson, they require him to start “referring”“ new potential clients for the procedure. Basically, that“s how the company stays in business. they work of off a referral bases.Â When Wilson fails to comply with the referral process, he is offered the chance to become a “second”“ for the second time, which of course is a more sinister proposition.

It“s not easy to clearly define what genre SECONDS fits into. Science fiction? Psychological thriller? Film noir? Doesn“t matter; it“s a fun film to watch and it will keep you guessing all the way to the end.Â Enjoy the prospect of abandoning who you are in order to chase happiness as a “second.”