I saw this TV production of the classic American play 2 or 3 years after it was made and was struck by one major, inescapable, inexcusable flaw: it contained the single worst piece of casting I had ever seen. Tuesday Weld is simply incapable of playing a spinster. There isn't enough make-up in Hollywood to make that beauty unattractive. The subtle, hidden qualities of feminine beauty that Lizzie is meant to discover slowly as the play progresses are all flagrant and obvious in Weld from the git-go. Her polish and confidence cannot be concealed or denied at any time on any level thus rendering her character unbelievable. Katherine Hepburn had a bony enough face and an odd enough personality to pull it off in the movie version. Weld can't. As a result the plot seemed ludicrous, the theme, the message lost. A sad waste of talent and performances.
Review of The Rainmaker
