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Thursday, December 15, 2011

Night Watch (1973)

Looking out the window on a rainy night, a woman (Elizabeth Taylor) recovering from a nervous breakdown witnesses a murder. But the police find no body nor any evidence of a murder. Her husband (Laurence Harvey) and her best friend (Billie Whitelaw, THE OMEN) are concerned for her sanity especially when she sees another non-existent dead body through her window. Based on a play by Lucille Fletcher (SORRY WRONG NUMBER), this hoary old plot should be familiar to anyone who's seen GASLIGHT or MIDNIGHT LACE. The director Brian G. Hutton (WHERE EAGLES DARE) can't seem to drum up the necessary suspense to keep us interested though the bloody denouement is fairly well done. Taylor is required to maintain a high level of hysteria through most of the film which doesn't sit well with her high pitched voice. Harvey, as usual, is a dullard which allows Whitelaw to give the film's most watchable performance. Valentino did Taylor's wardrobe, Billy Williams (an Oscar winner for GANDHI) did the cinematography and John Cameron, the unmemorable score. With Robert Lang, Tony Britton and Linda Hayden.

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