Plantiana Yawn. Poorly Filmed Snooze Fest.

CheerupSilver Very Cool!!!

Glimmerubro It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Taha Avalos The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

Coventry Sadly I can't share the enthusiasm of my fellow reviewers around here. "Dying Room Only" is a solid and tense little thriller, but I honestly can't label it a masterpiece and there are many better early 70's made- for-TV Lorimar Productions out there. Particularly the first half hour of this thriller is stupendous, with an extremely unsettling atmosphere and a few moments of unequaled suspense, but the film loses a lot of its power when the script inevitably has to come up with explanations and plot twists. The basic concept is close to genius and yet another imaginative idea of master writer Richard Matheson ("Duel", "The Omega Man", "The Devil Rides Out" and so many other genre classics…). The bickering middle-aged couple Bob and Jean Mitchell are on the homeward journey after their vacation and stop for lunch in an extremely remote and dowdy roadside diner/motel. The proprietor is very inhospitable and Bob nearly gets in conflict with him, much against the will of Jean. When she returns from the lady's room, Bob has inexplicably vanished and the proprietor as well as another client pretend to be unaware of his leaving. Those are the sequences in "Dying Room Only" are genuinely nightmarish! When we, as viewers, feel equally powerless as Jean and wonder what possibly could have happened during those few lousy minutes when she was in the bathroom. The interactions with the unfriendly and very unhelpful locals, the disbelief of the Sheriff, Jean's personal doubts … That's really terrific thriller cinema. It shouldn't come as too much of a surprise that the exact same concept got copied in the late 90's, by director Jonathan Mostow, in the thriller "Breakdown" starring Kurt Russell and J.T. Walsh. Unfortunately the unfolding of the mystery can't live up to the atmosphere of despair and fear of that initial half hour and the film gradually lost my interest. The denouement isn't bad or anything, it just could have been grislier and more horrific (even in spite of this being a TV-movie). The performances of Cloris Leachman and Ned Beatty (as the sleazy diner regular) are splendid and the isolated San Diego filming locations add a great deal to the suspense as well.

stevenfallonnyc I just saw "Dying Room Only" for the first time in over 30 years, and this is a typically great 70's TV-movie thriller. A couple (Cloris Leachman looking pretty good, and hubby Dabney Coleman) stop at a lonely desert cafe (in the daytime, not the nighttime as the summary here states) and the husband disappears as the wife is in the ladies room. The only two possible witnesses (the cafe cook and customer Ned Beatty, in a great sleazy role) are saying nothing. What happened? Where did the husband go? The movie then takes off to have Cloris Leachman trying to figure it out, since she is getting almost no help at all from anyone. Is even the local cop in on it, whatever "it" may be? Everyone is suspect. Nighttime comes, and danger looms....I do agree with the reviewer that stated this film could have been better in the second half. The first half is amazing - very suspenseful and thrilling. The second half kind of veers into "typical" fare but is still decent.A bunch of familiar 70's faces round out the small cast. Especially since the film is fairly short at about 1:13 (most TV-movies back then were 90 minutes with the commercials) this is definitely a fun watch.

gene-perr While watching Leachman in "Spanglish" yesterday, I happened to think of the "Dying Room Only", and the terrific job done by Leachman, Ross Martin and the rest. I can still feel the incredible tension that was created entirely by the good acting and dialog alone.....no special effects. Having a loved one disappear without a trace while stopped at a creepy, remote diner seemed so believable the way it was portrayed. Leachman's character displayed such courage and determination motivated by her love for her husband. As the movie develops, you can REALLY feel Leachman's character's desperation. I agree that Kurt Russell's "Breakdown" was a modern day remake of this movie. "Dying Room Only" was much more simplistic, yet still managed to create just as much, if not more, suspense! Does anyone know a way to see this movie again? Please let me know.

rick2000 All must view this priceless gem.It creates a delicious sense of dread. Cloris Leachman's performance is unequalled.