Mr & Mrs H
Bill McDowell (Mike Connors) knows times are changing and the defence contracts which have kept his aeronautics laboratory afloat are drying up so wants to know if old friend Jonathan Hart (Robert Wagner) will buy the business and redevelop it. Whilst Jonathan is looking into the business Jennifer Hart (Stefanie Powers) is working on an article about a medical team who get dropped in to troubled hot spots all around the world. But when Jonathan's snooping in to the business and its contracts seems to be behind a series of mysterious events and frame ups the investigating duo find themselves with another puzzle to solve.
If you asked me what TV shows made up my formative years "Hart to Hart" would appear on the list but it would appear down the list, probably somewhere in the middle. I think even back in the 80s I found "Hart to Hart" a little bit cheesy which is why whilst I watched many an episode it wasn't compulsory viewing. But like with other shows and movies from my childhood that fondness for nostalgia drew me to watch "Hart to Hart Returns" when almost 20 years after these made for TV movies were made they fell into my lap.
Now my memory of "Hart to Hart" is sketchy; yes I remember Jonathan and Jennifer along with Lionel Stander as their loyal butler Max who takes care of them but other details and any reoccurring characters had slipped from my memory. But within seconds of "Hart to Hart Returns" starting it all came flooding back to me and whilst the seeds of the storyline are being put into place the first third of the movie makes sure that it reminds us of everything we need to know, from Jonathan being a rich man's man to Jennifer being attractive but no push over with Max being crafty in his taking care of them. Yes it is corny when in the middle of the night Jonathan and Jennifer take the dog for the walk in their dressing gowns but to be honest it is so "Hart to Hart".
Anyway after giving us the reminder of how life is for the Harts which includes horse riding in slow motion to romantic music so Stefanie Powers' hair can flow in the air we get to the actual crime part of things. It is shall we say weak but then typical of the old TV series with are crime solving couple doing what they do best. At times it is so cheesy it is laughable and a scene involving a building on fire will have you in hysterics. But if truth be told the storyline ends up not that important and it is the chemistry of Robert Wagner and Stefanie Powers which makes "Hart to Hart Returns" enjoyable and the real reason why you would watch.
What this all boils down to is that "Hart to Hart Returns" is okay and probably works well for those who were absolutely hooked on the series back in the 80s. But whilst the chemistry between Wagner and Powers is still brilliant the whole thing is a bit too cheesy.
Tags: TV Mystery Movie Crime Solvers
