Don't Look Now (1973)
Starring: Julie Christie, Donald Sutherland
Director: Nicolas Roeg
Synopsis: Brilliant psychological thriller. Rated as one of the most frightening films ever made
Reviewed by: Omar Khan

"superbly chilling... hypnotically brilliant" Time Out 100 Best Ever Films

"haunting masterpiece " Empire

"over-indulgent but gripping" Maltin's

"tricky adult horror drama" Blockbuster Video

"ambiguous and enigmatic, but its psychic themes are fascinating" Creature Features

"One of the most dynamic and radical British Films ever" Total Film

 

One of the most intriguing films of the 1970s, Don't Look Now is a richly imaginative work, making extraordinary use of colour, light and shadow. Beautifully acted and deeply unsettling, it remains one of the finest psychological horror films ever made, exploring themes of premonition, grief and second sight.

The film carries an almost unbearable undercurrent of dread. There is a constant sense of impending doom, with its characters hurtling inexorably towards tragedy while warning signs flash all around them. Yet they remain oblivious, powerless to halt their slide towards disaster.

Director Nicolas Roeg presents perhaps the most unromantic vision of Venice ever committed to film. This is not the Venice of romance, elegance and postcard beauty. Instead, it is a city steeped in decay and corruption, reeking of stagnant canals and damp stone, as bleak and grey as one could imagine. This is the Venice of nightmares rather than dreams, where every narrow alleyway and silent canal seems to conceal a lurking menace and, ultimately, death itself.

Roeg constructs a dark, kaleidoscopic vision of this decaying landscape, punctuated by subtle—and occasionally startling—flashes of red. It is brilliantly crafted, while the fragmented editing contributes enormously to the film's pervasive sense of unease and emotional disorientation.

When the film reaches its devastating conclusion, everything suddenly falls into place with chilling logic. It is one of those rare endings that becomes even more powerful upon reflection.

A superb psychological thriller, Don't Look Now is impeccably acted and masterfully directed. Upon its release, it generated considerable discussion because of its lengthy and unusually explicit love scene. It was regarded as remarkably daring for its time—and, arguably, even by today's standards. Ironically, Nicolas Roeg was reportedly disappointed that the sequence failed to generate the level of controversy he had anticipated, as the public reaction proved considerably more restrained than expected.