Virginia Madsen in Linda (1993 TV Movie)

Linda. This one is special. Not that it’s a particularly good film. It isn’t, I mean, it’s not the worse film I’ve ever seen. Far from it in fact. No. It’s special for an entirely different reason.

You see, this one – This is the first film I, unknowingly, came across Virginia Madsen in a film.

I can’t remember how old I was, I was young. I was flicking through the TV on a bored Saturday afternoon and came across Linda playing on one of the channels. For whatever reason I left it on. The film had already started, I don’t particularly remember *why* I settled in it to watch but by the end I knew I thoroughly enjoyed it.

It’d probably take a few more years before I could put a name to the face, but I got there in the end 😉

Linda is a TV Movie from 1993 and first aired on the 8th October on the USA Network. It’s based on the 1956 novella by John D. MacDonald called Border Town Girl. Or part of it perhaps, it’s a book with two stories. The second one is Linda. Perhaps Mr MacDonald is best known for another of his novels that made it to the big screen, Cape Fear.

It’s actually the second time the novella has been adapted into a film, the first time was twenty years before in 1973 with Stella Stevens as Linda and the films was also known as, Linda.

Interestingly Cape Fear would be another book that made it to the big screen twice, once in 1962 and again in 1991.

The story revolves around two couples who decide to go away together on a short break. They become quick friends after Jeff and Stella Jeffries (Ted McGinley and Laura Harrington) relocate and move in next door to Paul (Richard Thomas) and Linda (Virginia,naturally)They’ve known each other for about a year at this point and regularly spend time together and the two couples decide to go on a short break away together, Paul is reluctant at first but both Jeff and Linda push the idea of it.

While they are away two members of opposite couples, Jeff and Linda get a little, friendlier, than the other two would like, and quickly. It all starts rather abruptly with Linda whisking off Jeff early on the first morning.

Stella takes it as a sign of an ongoing affair but Paul isn’t so sure. She’s convinced they’ve gone away on holiday so they could thinly disguise their affair and if discovered then Paul and herself couldn’t kick up much of a fuss.

Linda and Jeff spend more and more time together while Stella and Paul begrudgingly get to know each other better.

Paul confronts Linda about her spending so much time with Jeff and she admits she was just doing it to make him jealous. They sleep together but the next morning he wakes to find Linda and Jeff on the beach spending more time together. He confronts Jeff but he puts his mind at ease, seemingly, before running back to Linda to flirt some more in front of Paul.

Enraged Paul runs over and attacks Jeff, the fight is over quickly with Jeff getting the upper hand and Linda drags him off leaving Paul to lick his wounds being comforted by Stella.

Stella and Paul do grow closer, eventually kissing though they both suspect it’s what Jeff and Linda want to happen. Stella tries to take things to the next level by inviting Paul to a Motel, they embrace again but neither of them can go through with it.

Paul goes back to the cabin he’s sharing with Linda who is waiting for him. He starts to pack and announces his intentions to go home the following day.

He meets Stella on the beach the next day and spend more time together. They talk about if they should leave but fall asleep on the beach.

They both awake. Jeff is sitting casually beside Stella, but Linda. Linda has a shotgun, she shoots Stella in cold blood while she’s still lying on the back before turning the gun on Jeff and taking shots at him as he runs to the beach.

Paul runs to help Linda but finds her unresponsive, he asks her to wait while he runs into town for help.

He returns with the Sheriff, but Linda is gone. He takes them to the beach and they find Stella’s body but there is no sign of Jeff. Paul goes through everything that happened with The Sheriff at the beach, but just as they are finishing up they spot Linda, and Jeff coming towards them along the beach.

Jeff immediately blames Paul for his wife’s death and attacks him in front of everyone.

Paul has been set up for the death of Stella.

Jeff and Linda collude together to continue framing Paul, their stories are airtight and the frame job is completely successful and Paul finds himself in jail.I’ll stop there or I’ll give the whole movie away and if you’ve not seen this one already then I really would recommend finding a copy and giving it a watch.

I think this is some of Virginia’s finest work, I mean – OK – It’s not the best film ever, even though I really like it even after all this time. Virginia plays a range from home making housewife, sexy seductress, femme fatale, aggrieved wife and a woman of some repent. It genuinely shows her talent and she shines through the whole thing.

Linda is portrayed as such a ‘real’ person, even the little things like he complaining at the start of the film she should have done more with the exercise video she got, just ace.
There is a scene at the end in particular, the final one between Paul and Linda. Watching her in that scene alone is kind of mesmerising. Seeing her in this scene after seeing her in the rest of the movie is quite the thing.

Richard Thomas is also great in this to be fair, he plays Paul brilliantly and you end up routing for him. You know he’s been set up as you see the murder but Linda and Jeff have seemingly thought of everything. Watching him as he realises the extent of what Linda has done to set him up and realising the woman he’s been married to all of these years has never properly loved him is properly excellent. A far cry from “John-Boy Walton” for sure. He narrates the movie sporadically which helps to keep you on his side I think.

Availability:
Not good unfortunately. There are VHS copies floating around but it’s never had a DVD release. You can find so called “fair use” DVD copies on some corners of the Internet.

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