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Wait Until Dark [1967]


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Outdated
Review date: 2008-09-12 Rating: 4 out of 10

Good acting, terrific thriller, blah blah blah. The truth is it's very outdated, the acting is over the top, the story, the direction, the characters' situation, the music, everything is so 60's. Only watchable if you're an absolute fan of the 60's or as an historic curiosity.

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Reviews


'World's Champion Blind Woman'
Review date: 2008-05-11 Rating: 8 out of 10

'Wait Until Dark' is about Suzy Hendrix, a newly blind woman who, very unfortunately, happens to come to posess a heroin-stuffed doll. The doll is wanted by three men, and Suzy just happens to be in their way.

Audrey Hepburn as Suzy shows her true acting skills very well. Without using clouded lenses or even a cane for the most part, she makes you believe she is blind superbly. She is at once weak and blind yet strong and independent.

And Alan Arkin as Mr Roat comes very close to stealing the show. He is dark and creepy and you just would not want to meet him in a dark alley! He plays his part extremely well, terrorizing poor Suzy with no hint of remorse.

The plot is very play-like (intentionally) as the action takes place (after the introduction) solely in the apartment, the hall and the street outside. It creates a trapped feeling to add to the fact that Suzy is in fact trapped! The suspense is kept up until the riveting climax. I think the climax will always be scary, but I'm not so sure the suspense would hold up with repeated viewings (but it's a cheap - pricewise that is! - film so you might as well get it anyway).

To conclude, 'Wait Until Dark' is a fantastic film where Audrey Hepburn shows her true potential and Alan Arkin makes you want to grab a teddy bear. Just one thing though - watch it in the dark. This is the only way you will see the true potential of the film. The movie makes great use of lighting and you don't know what's happening when the screen goes black...


tap, tap, tap
Review date: 2008-01-25 Rating: 10 out of 10

I watched this as a kid and it stuck in my mind so much that whenever it's on TV I always watch it.

Everyone does so well in this, Hepburn is at once both fragile and strong, Crenna and Weston are hods but with some conscience about what they're doing. For me Alan Arkin stole the film, Roat is creepy. As it turns out I also found creepy to be very attractive and found myself almost rooting for the bad guy.

It does look a little dated now but if you enjoy well acted suspence for example The Night of the Hunter / Robert Mitchem I think you won't go far wrong in adding this to your collection.

Terrific thriller
Review date: 2007-12-22 Rating: 8 out of 10

I remember watching this on television in the 1970's and it was one the scariest films of any genre I'd ever seen. Audrey Hepburn is superb in an Oscar nominated performance as a blind women terrorised by 3 men who are looking for a doll which contains drugs. Its tautly directed by Terence Young (who also directed the first two James Bond films 'Dr No' and 'From Russia with love'). The excellent music soundtrack is by Henry Mancini.

As well as the usual trailers, the DVD has an interesting short extra called 'A Look in the Dark' in which Alan Arkin and the Producer Mel Ferrer (who was married to Audrey Hepburn) look back at the film. This is only about 10 minutes but its quite informative.

However the main reason to buy the DVD is the film, and once it starts you will be hooked.


Watch it with the lights out
Review date: 2007-05-19 Rating: 10 out of 10

This taut thriller is based on a stage play, and wisely is not opened out too much: after some initial scene setting, the action is concentrated in one apartment and the street immediately outside.

Two con men (Richard Crenna and Jack Weston, both giving beautifully-nuanced performances) reluctantly assist the murderous Harry Roat (Alan Arkin) in his attempt to recover a stash of heroin hidden in a china doll which they believe is in the possession of a blind woman (Audrey Hepburn). The attempts to trick and then terrorise her into giving up the doll, and the distrust between the criminals, give rise to the twists and turns in the plot. It all ends in a tension-filled sequence, much of which takes place in pitch darkness.

Hepburn gives a terrific performance as a frightened woman driven to the ends of her ingenuity, strength and courage, and Arkin is as threatening when restrained as he is when enraged.

According to the box, this 12-certificate DVD "Contains moderate violence and threat". Piffle. Watch it with the lights out, and it will make Psycho look like the Magic Roundabout.

Product Details/Specifications


Actor(s):
Alan Arkin
Efrem Zimbalist Jr.
Audrey Hepburn
Jack Weston
Richard Crenna

Creators:
Audrey Hepburn (Primary Contributor)
Alan Arkin (Primary Contributor)

Director(s):

Recording label: Warner Home Video
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
EAN: 7321900275279
Binding: DVD
Number of items: 1
Format: PAL, Widescreen,
Release date: 2006-03-13
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Audience rating: Suitable for 12 years and over
Region code: 2
Running time: 107 minutes
Theatrical release date: 1967
Language: English (Subtitled)
Language: French (Subtitled)
Language: Spanish (Subtitled)
Language: English (Original Language)

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