Una lama nel buio

Convoluted suspenser that showcases both Scheider and Streep. It's not a flick to tune in and out of. The plot's tricky, with a number of flashbacks that got somewhat confusing for me. Anyway, Scheider's an emotionally detached psychiatrist who's slowly unwound by the mysterious Streep as he delves further into the stabbing death of her lover and his former patient, Bynum. Scheider's convincing as Dr. Rice whose emotions are hidden behind a professional demeanor. Doing that meaningfully, as Scheider does, strikes me as challenging for any actor. Meanwhile, Streep also scores as the emotionally troubled Brooke, who appears the obvious culprit in Bynum's murder. Crucially, however, it's hard to tell what's going on behind that unstable outer woman. Together, the two characters are little short of riveting as they interact in ambivalent fashion. Also look for renowned actress Jessica Tandy as Rice's sober-sided mother in what appears a tacked-on role that's nevertheless well played.

Though the screenplay's murky, perhaps appropriately so, there're a number of grabber scenes, like the dream sequence with the sinister little girl or Rice's walk into Central Park. However, the climax appears clumsily contrived in order to get a conventional ending. Too bad, since the movie's mood and well-placed ambiguities deserve better. All in all, it's an intriguing movie that remains a testament to its two leads.

First, it represents a hommage to Hitchcock. An inspired, precise and delicate one. Second- it propose three inspired performances in the lead roles. And a dream remaining seductive trip in the profound rules of a genre. A murder. A schrinck. Sentimental affaires. And visually powerfull impression. Well crafted thriller could be a resonable definition about it.

I almost turned this movie off in the middle because I was tired of being manipulated by the corny scary stuff that was overwrought and too dragged out. That stuff was okay for the master, Hitchcock, but today it has whiskers.

I was very surprised to see Meryl Streep looking more beautiful than ever before or since. It was the way her hairdo framed her face, I think. Any way, this movie was all Streep. Scheider has a certain gravitas which many Hollywood Idols never achieve even though they are far more popular. But Streep—from her first moment on screen I said to myself, I've never seen this side of her! She's created an entirely original person! Then she delivered a soliloquy toward the end of the movie which she fashioned with such skill and insight that one would think it was Shakespeare!

There is simply no one as good as Streep, man or woman. She turns this average movie into something worth watching.

Quiet thriller with great acting from Meryl Streep, taken a slightly different route with the paranoid performance from Roy Schnieder. Unfortunately some other of the other performances are quite poor, with the standard dumbed down cops. Slow to pick up, it's worth sticking with past the stock plot setup routines. There's some neat camera work to strengthen the guessing game and make you feel the paranoia and fear of the doctor. There's a fantastic sequence in central park where the Doctor follows a mystery woman, losing her beneath the light \ dark pools of street lights. Using the sound of her footsteps to pull your attention forward to a tunnel. The final moments of that sequence are brilliant. Throughout the lighting is used to great effect with all other senses and even performances extremely restrained. A good film which I'm sure has influenced many others of this genre.

Dr. Sam Rice (Roy Scheider) is a Manhattan psychiatrist like his mother Grace (Jessica Tandy). He's recently divorced. One of his patients George Bynum has been killed. He is visited by the mysterious Brooke Reynolds (Meryl Streep) who worked with Bynum at the auction house Crispin's. She's also Bynum's mistress. They are interrupted by Detective Vitucci and she accidentally leaves behind a watch. Dr. Rice examines his files on Bynum and suspicions falls on Reynolds.

I really like the Hitchcockian touches. I love the laundry room when the lights go out in the hallway. I did not like all the flashback re-examination of his files. The plot loses its way a bit and some of its tension. Meryl Streep is pretty good as the mysterious damsel-in-distress. Although she's not the classic sex bombshell. Scheider is still a good leading man. This could be a much better mystery thriller.