Don't Look Now (1973)

 HALLOWEEN REVIEWS 2022

Director: Nicholas Roeg

Writer: Allan Scott and Chris Bryant, from a story by Daphne Du Maurier

Stars: Donald Sutherland, Julie Christie, Hilary Mason, Clelia Matania, Massimo Serato, Renato Scarpa, Giorgio Trestini

Devastated by the death of their young daughter, an architect and his wife (Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie) spend some time in Venice, where the wife becomes convinced that a pair of sisters (Hilary Mason and Clelia Matania) has the psychic ability to contact the dead girl. 

The husband, however, tries to remain coolly rational about the situation, even as evidence mounts that he may have the gift himself.

 

It all culminates in a startling conclusion.

 

I find I have to evaluate this film on two levels.

 

First, there is no movie that projects an atmosphere of palpable dread and uneasiness more successfully. 

Every moment seems fraught with mystery and impending doom; we never feel safe in this picture. 

It is the payoff to the magnificent build-up where the film missteps.

 

The final revelation is a disappointment, as it does not follow from anything that has gone before. 

The film is otherwise so masterful that I cannot give it a poor review.