Intimate Strangers

Written by the astute Shapiro team (husband and wife, Richard and Esther), this TV-made drama involves Dennis Weaver abusing wife Sally Struthers, sometimes in front of their two kids, and how everyone covers up--desperate to keep this ugly secret in the closet. Many years before "The Burning Bed" came this less-sensational suburban nightmare with concerns which are unfortunately timeless. Dennis Weaver does solid work. As for Sally Struthers, she became something of a punchline in the 1990s with her over-the-top TV commercials, yet as an actress during this era she was very brave (her character here is a world apart from Gloria on "All In The Family"). As a straightforward, no-nonsense examination of abuse, "Intimate Strangers" is harrowing, dramatic food-for-thought designed for grown-up people.