ROD STEIGER has an actor's field day assuming many different disguises when he decides to play a cat-and-mouse game with detective GEORGE SEGAL who is hot on his trail to capture a serial killer. That about sums up the plot contrivances of NO WAY TO TREAT A LADY, which has Steiger donning various make-up disguises so that he can gain entry into unsuspecting female's apartments and promptly strangle them.

The dark humor is always on the surface of this comic showcase for actor Steiger, who dons each disguise with relish and gives a performance you're not likely to forget.

EILEEN HECKART is his overbearing (ultra so) Jewish mother who has unwittingly driven her son to the brink of madness. She's so good at "overbearing" that she almost drives the audience mad too, but LEE REMICK is rather wasted in a colorless role as a dame who's been around the block a few times and likes to spout smart talk. It's not a well developed role and Remick can do little with it but look good in plenty of make-up and mascara.

For pure titillation and subject matter, this is way ahead of its time, a comic thriller that is largely forgotten and deserves some attention, if only for Rod Steiger's tour de force role, all played in tongue-in-cheek manner.

Rod Steiger is excellent as Christopher Gill, a hammy theater manager and psychotic master of disguise. Gill stalks and kills various women all due to his love/hate relationship with his dead mother, who was a respected stage actress. He uses his talents of disguise as a plumber; a priest; and policeman to gain the confidence of his victims. He starts a cat-and-mouse game with a NYPD detective Morris Brummel(George Segal),who himself is quite the "mama's boy" still living with his mother. At every chance she tries to shame him for being a Jewish cop. Gill begins calling in tips of his crimes to Brummel, who is slowly putting together the clues to the serial killings; and on the back burner trying to figure out his feelings for his new girlfriend(Lee Remick). The Segal/Remick relationship seems no more than a silly teen-aged romance. Steiger is perfect for the role. Segal's character needs a backbone. Remick works effortlessly and is so easy to look at. In supporting roles are:Murray Hamilton and Eileen Heckart. Very interesting to say the least.

This movie wound up being a vehicle for Rod Steiger to show off is acting talents, which were at their peak at this time. Now, he's a cartoon of himself with mostly overacted roles.

In this story, Steiger does his Boston Strangler imitation pretending he is different people to gain entrance into their homes and strangle them. Unlike the real-life strangler, Steiger's character disguises himself as different people (and kills half as many as the real life killer in Boston). He's interesting to watch through the entire story.

The other main characters weren't as fascinating. This was the beginning of the big change in Hollywood where morals went out the window. I was disappointed to hear Lee Remick announce how she was kicking out her live-in boyfriend of three years. Remick, someone I've always liked watching, was a major disappointment in this. She looked bad and her character was classless and trashy with stupid dialog. I had always seen Remick play classier roles, but then again the restrictions were now lifted.

Eileen Heckert also was annoying as the overly-doting Jewish mother. Her act grew tiresome in a hurry, but fortunately, she exited soon anyway.

George Segal, meanwhile, plays a good guy cop and is a lot more enjoyable to watch than the two ladies.

In all, an interesting film that really started showing how Hollywood was going to be changing in content.