5 Miles to Midnight

5 Miles to Midnight (1963) starring Sophia Loren and Anthony Perkins is a thrilling movie which will take you down the road of deception and send chills down your spine. A beautiful Italian woman Lisa, played by Sohia Loren, marries an American man, Robert (Anthony Perkins) and they live in France. The American Lisa has married is not the prince in shining armor as she thought. He is however, a domineering and insanely jealous man, a recipe for disaster.  No matter how hard Lisa wishes her troubles away, she realizes she is stuck in a violent marriage. Robert is a total loser, not only is he violent, but he can’t hold a job. It is Lisa who puts the food on the table. But still he has a hold on her. The kind of hold you hear from women stuck in domestic violence.

Much to Lisa’s relief, Robert makes a business trip. Lisa is hoping he’ll land a job! But just to be separated from him is respite for her. Robert’s plane crashes and Robert is declared dead. Lisa’s relief lasts for just a while because much to her shock Robert escaped death and is actually alive. But he wants everyone to believe he is dead because he wants to collect on the insurance money. He shows up at Lisa’s and convinces her to help him get the money. He promises he will never see her again, but she must help him swindle the Insurance Company. Lisa agrees and her real troubles begin.

Sohia in this role is as she was in all her roles, beautiful, sexy, but she captured the fear of a woman stuck in a violent marriage much like Farrah Fawcett did in “Burning Bed.” Perkins as the insanely jealous husband is creepy and unsettling. He just seems too real. The supremely thrilling ending will blow you away.