Grace Quigley

I really like it when I can rewatch a film that I might have hated the first time I saw it and actually find it enjoyable on the second go around. Case in point is 1985's Grace Quigley.

I always loved the story idea of Grace Quigley. An elderly woman, Katherine Hepburn, who's fed up with life hires a hitman, Nick Nolte, to murder her. When her senior friends discover her scheme, they want in on it too, giving Grace a new lease on life.

Keep in mind that this was long before Jack Kevorkian was in the news, so when I first read about it I thought it sounded very original and had the potential to be comically dark. Kind of like an Eating Raoul for the senior set. But then I saw it and was disappointed. I felt it had a hard time finding the right tone and was a little too upbeat.

Well, it's been thirty years since my first viewing, and I actually enjoyed it quite a bit. It does lose some steam near the end and it concludes on a too cheerful note, but I still had a good time with it. Now the original ending did end on a dark note, but after testing poorly, the studio made them reshoot it. In 2006,the writer of the film, A. Martin Zweiback, went back and re edited the film with the original ending intact. This version is named The Ultimate Solution Of Grace Quigley and won a screenplay award at the New York International Film Awards. I haven't seen this cut but it sounds great.

This had been a pet projects of Hepburns since 1972. She originally had Steve McQueen lined up to play her male lead. Due to the subject matter it took awhile to get this project off the ground and McQueen passed away before they were able to get it greenlit. As great as McQueen could have been in the role, I think that Nolte does a terrific job and I think he and Hepburn are great together. The two characters have a mother/son kind of bond that has a sweetness to it. The original script was more of a romance between the two, which could have been interesting in a Harold And Maude kind of way. I gues it was rewritten when Nolte was cast. Supposedly it wasn't smooth sailing on set. Hepburn had some issues with Nolte's drinking and even accused him of, "falling down drunk in every gutter in town."

This was Hepburn's last leading role on the big screen. Even though it wasn't a huge hit with the fans or critics, I think it was a fine one to go out on. Hepburn was always known for her feistiness, and it's on full display with this character. She loved this role so much that she even wanted to do a sequel.

Unfortunately this isn't available on dvd or blu ray, but I hold out hopes of a release that includes both versions.