See No Evil (1971 film)
See No Evil, also known as Blind Terror, is a 1971 psychological horror-thriller film directed by Richard Fleischer and starring Mia Farrow as a recently-blinded woman who is stalked by a psychopath while staying at her family's rural estate.
| See No Evil | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Richard Fleischer |
| Produced by | Martin Ransohoff |
| Written by | Brian Clemens |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Elmer Bernstein |
| Cinematography | Gerry Fisher |
| Edited by | Thelma Connell |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures |
Release date | 2 September 1971 |
Running time | 89 minutes |
| Country |
|
| Language | English |
| Budget | $1.2 million[1] |
Plot
After being blinded in a horse riding accident, Sarah (Mia Farrow) visits her uncle's stately home. Out on a date with her boyfriend, Steve (Norman Eshley), she escapes the fate of her relatives (Dorothy Alison, Robin Bailey, and Diane Grayson), who are murdered at their home, along with the gardener, by a psychotic killer. Sarah returns from her date and spends the night in the house, unaware that three of her family members' corpses are strewn about the house.
Sarah eventually discovers the bodies. She also discovers a bracelet containing an engraved name on it, which she correctly assumes belongs to the killer. The killer returns – his face is only shown to the audience in the film’s last scene, otherwise he is only shown from the knees down, wearing jeans and distinctive leather boots – to search for the lost bracelet. He discovers Sarah, who manages to flee on horseback. Sarah encounters a family of gypsies and shows them the bracelet. They see the name "Jack" inscribed on it, leading Tom (Michael Elphick), the head of the family, to conclude his brother, Jack, must be responsible, as he dated one of the murdered women from the estate. In an effort to save Jack, Tom pretends to take Sarah to the police but, instead, locks her in a secluded shed. His plan is to then round up the family and flee the area.
Sarah escapes from the shed and is found by Steve, out searching for her. She tells him all she knows. Steve and his men leave Sarah at his house to recuperate and begin a search for the killer, who they assume is a gypsy. They come across the two gypsy brothers and are about to assault them when a frantic Jack explains that his brother suspected him of being the killer because of the name on the bracelet. However Jack insists he had nothing to do with it. They look at the bracelet again and see the name on it is actually "Jacko".
Steve, upon learning the killer's real name, hurries away with his men. Back at his house it is revealed that one of Steve's workers, left behind to guard Sarah, is Jacko (Paul Nicholas). The killer, still searching for his lost bracelet, is stealthily going through the pockets of Sarah's clothes, left beside the tub while she is taking a bath. When she reaches for a towel she touches his hand. Both are momentarily startled, then Jacko attempts to drown Sarah in the bath. Just when it seems he has succeeded, Steve races in, just in time to save her.
Cast
- Mia Farrow as Sarah
- Dorothy Alison as Betty Rexton
- Robin Bailey as George Rexton
- Diane Grayson as Sandy Rexton
- Brian Rawlinson as Barker
- Norman Eshley as Steve Reding
- Paul Nicholas as Jacko
- Michael Elphick as Tom
Production
Development
Interviewed in 1997, writer Brian Clemens recalled that he wrote the script 'on spec' and Columbia Pictures told him: "'Well, if Mia Farrow plays the lead, we'll buy it,' and she read it and liked it, and so they bought it and we shot it.'"[2] The film was a co-production between the United Kingdom and the United States.[3]
Reception and criticism
Its theatrical release in the United States was 'a box office disappointment' and reviews were 'generally mixed'.[4] The New York Times wrote:
"See No Evil has its share of thrills. Cheap thrills, to be sure, but thrills none the less - and everything in the rest of Richard Fleischer's new movie... encourages us to value small favors. Attempting on the one hand to mean something and on the other hand trying to crank up the terror, Fleischer keeps suggesting confrontations between the rich and the poor, the old and the young, families with daughters to protect and men with warped desires. For all the potency of a camera movement, it can never have exactly the power of a conceptual image, and therefore "See No Evil" is better with its mindless terror than with its witless meaning. And although everything becomes far too much long before it is over, the movie is generally at it most ridiculous precisely where it hopes to make sense."[5]
"For sheer suspense", wrote The Palm Beach Post, it "may well be without peer", but, while praising the performance of Mia Farrow, considered the 'fiendish gamut' of injury her character is subjected to could 'only be called sadism'.[6]
Screenwriter Brian Clemens was nominated for an Edgar Allan Poe Award.
Later reviewers have described the film as a 'creepy, atmospheric thriller', in the style of Terence Young's 1967 film Wait Until Dark,[7] while critic John Derry highlights the way Mia Farrow is presented 'from the first moment' as 'the obvious victim'.[8]
References
- Fleischer Just Not Much of a Talker Los Angeles Times 1 Aug 1971: q15.
- Wheeler W. Dixon (28 February 2000). The Second Century of Cinema: The Past and Future of the Moving Image. SUNY Press. p. 126. ISBN 978-0-7914-4516-7.
- "See No Evil". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. Los Angeles, California: American Film Institute. Archived from the original on 21 April 2020.
- Stafford, Jeff. "See No Evil (1971)". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
- Greenspun, Roger (11 September 1971). "'Mindless terror, witless meaning': See No Evil 'has thrills' with Mia Farrow, and likable cast". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
Reprint of The New York Times review
- Benninger, Jerry (11 October 1971). "See No Evil: Sheer Suspense". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
- Yoram Allon; Del Cullen; Hannah Patterson (2002). Contemporary North American Film Directors: A Wallflower Critical Guide. Wallflower Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-1-903364-52-9.
- Charles Derry (1988). The Suspense Thriller: Films in the Shadow of Alfred Hitchcock. McFarland. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-7864-6240-7.