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Play Misty for Me

  • 1971
  • R
  • 1h 42m
IMDb RATING
6.9/10
34K
YOUR RATING
Clint Eastwood and Jessica Walter in Play Misty for Me (1971)
Watch Trailer
Play trailer1:41
1 Video
99+ Photos
Psychological ThrillerDramaThriller

The life of a disc jockey is turned upside down after a romantic encounter with an obsessed fan.The life of a disc jockey is turned upside down after a romantic encounter with an obsessed fan.The life of a disc jockey is turned upside down after a romantic encounter with an obsessed fan.

  • Director
    • Clint Eastwood
  • Writers
    • Jo Heims
    • Dean Riesner
  • Stars
    • Clint Eastwood
    • Jessica Walter
    • Donna Mills
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.9/10
    34K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Clint Eastwood
    • Writers
      • Jo Heims
      • Dean Riesner
    • Stars
      • Clint Eastwood
      • Jessica Walter
      • Donna Mills
    • 227User reviews
    • 67Critic reviews
    • 78Metascore
  • See production info at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 nomination total

    Videos1

    Trailer
    Trailer 1:41
    Trailer

    Photos153

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    Top cast30

    Edit
    Clint Eastwood
    Clint Eastwood
    • Dave
    Jessica Walter
    Jessica Walter
    • Evelyn
    Donna Mills
    Donna Mills
    • Tobie
    John Larch
    John Larch
    • Sgt. McCallum
    Jack Ging
    Jack Ging
    • Frank
    Irene Hervey
    Irene Hervey
    • Madge
    James McEachin
    James McEachin
    • Al Monte
    Clarice Taylor
    Clarice Taylor
    • Birdie
    Don Siegel
    Don Siegel
    • Murphy
    • (as Donald Siegel)
    Duke Everts
    • Jay Jay
    George Fargo
    • Man
    Mervin W. Frates
    • Locksmith
    Tim Frawley
    • Deputy Sheriff
    Otis Kadani
    • Policeman
    Britt Lind
    Britt Lind
    • Anjelica
    • (as Brit Lind)
    Paul E. Lippman
    • 2nd Man
    Jack Kosslyn
    Jack Kosslyn
    • Cab Driver
    Ginna Patterson
    • Madalyn
    • Director
      • Clint Eastwood
    • Writers
      • Jo Heims
      • Dean Riesner
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews227

    6.933.9K
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    Featured reviews

    7robfollower

    A highly enjoyable thriller.

    A brief fling between a male disc jockey and an obsessed female fan takes a frightening, and perhaps even deadly turn when another woman enters the picture.

    I found this trivia interesting. Even though it touches on the early-'70s flashpoints of sexual liberation, studio execs expressed doubts about why anyone would want to see a movie featuring Eastwood as a deejay. Eastwood reportedly answered that he was not sure either, but he thought it was a good suspense story, and he offered his services as director for free. Play Misty for Me wound up making five times more than it cost and is a precursor to such erotic thrillers as Fatal Attraction (1987) and Basic Instinct (1992). Eastwood mentor Don Siegel appears early on as a bartender.

    In the role of the stalker is Jessica Walter who balances between crazed, malevolent psychopath and sweetheart bimbo with a creepy ease. Much of the credit must go to Jessica Walter for her outstanding performance . A highly enjoyable thriller.
    7Hey_Sweden

    The scream you hear may be your own!

    Clint Eastwood certainly learned his lessons well when it came to making his directorial debut, with this now legendary shocker. It may not be all that original, but when it comes to this kind of stalker melodrama, it definitely set a template for others to follow. The pacing wasn't always as tight as this viewer would have liked, but the script (written by Jo Heims and Dean Riesner, based on Heims' story) is often pretty snappy and the film is well cast, and well acted, from top to bottom.

    Clint also stars, playing late night jazz D. J. Dave Garver, who learns that he has a devoted admirer in the sexy Evelyn Draper (Jessica Walter). They have a brief fling, but Dave finds that Evelyn will be extremely unwilling to let him go. She will also go over the deep end upon her discovery that Dave is busy making amends with another woman, an ex-girlfriend named Tobie (Donna Mills). The balance of the film shows what happens as Evelyns' actions threaten to completely derail Daves' life.

    Clint is good in the lead, and Mills is appealing in her part. John Larch is a delight as a sardonic police detective who gets involved when the deranged Evelyn assaults Daves' housekeeper Birdie (Clarice Taylor). All lending their valuable support are Jack Ging, Irene Hervey, and James McEachin. Clint also casts his directing mentor, and five time collaborator, Don Siegel, in the role of Murphy the bartender, and Siegel does a solid and engaging job. But the main reason that "Play Misty for Me" is so memorable is because Walter is so incredible. She is, by turns, amusing, sexy, clingy, pathetic, and ultimately psychotic.

    Well filmed, and situated in Clints' old stamping ground, the town of Carmel. In addition to the score by Dee Barton, there's plenty of great music along the way, with some sequences set at the Monterey Jazz Festival. There are brief, jarring bursts of violence, and a fairly effective and suspenseful finale.

    This has to rank as one of the most iconic films in this whole sub genre of thrillers.

    Seven out of 10.
    8jhclues

    Edge-Of-Your-Seat Thriller

    Clint Eastwood made his directorial debut with this 1971 suspense/thriller, `Play Misty for Me,' in which he also stars as Dave Garver, a late night radio disc jockey for a small station in Carmel, California. During his show, he opens the phones to take requests, at which times a frequent caller-- a woman named Evelyn (Jessica Walter)-- always asks for the same tune, `Misty.' Her obsession, it turns out, is not with that particular record, but with Garver, who is currently sorting out a relationship gone bad with a young artist, Tobie (Donna Mills), but which may be on the mend in light of the fact that Tobie has just returned to town after a lengthy absence in the wake of their breakup. In the interim, Garver has become entangled with Evelyn, a fan he soon discovers gives new meaning to the term `fanatic.'

    Eastwood invades Hitchcock territory with this film, which it turns out was indeed a harbinger of the course his career would take from this point on, that of directing and starring in his own movies. With this one, it's apparent that he had that special touch from the beginning; he knows unequivocally what he likes, what works and how to deliver it. The only weakness in the film (if you can even call it a weakness), would be the use of longshots during a couple of scenes between Garver and Tobie that take place on the coast. It adds a scenic vista for a backdrop, but listening to the dialogue with the actors in the distance gives it a dialogue-added-later feeling. It's a minor flaw, however, that takes nothing away from the overall impact of the film, especially as Eastwood establishes a deliberate pace that allows the tension to mount throughout.

    It would seem that for an actor to direct himself would be a monumental undertaking, especially the first time, but Eastwood proves here what has been corroborated over the years and with his films since, that he is his own best director. And it's a club to which few actor/directors belong, which puts him in the elite company of Welles, Branagh and most recently, Ed Harris (with `Pollock'), just to name a few of the select. As Garver, a minor celebrity whose biggest fan turns out to be his worst nightmare, Eastwood is thoroughly convincing, and though this may not be one of his most memorable roles, it is certainly well acted, and delivered with that subtle Eastwood charm.

    Jessica Walter combines just the right amount of beauty, charm and menace for her role of Evelyn, which just may be her most memorable performance ever. She creates a character who is smoothly confident, if slightly vulnerable, and prone to instantaneous bursts of psychotic anger. It's an honest portrait of an extremely disturbed individual with the ability to conceal the true nature-- and danger-- of her mental state. Exceptionally well realized by Walter, Evelyn could be the older sister of Stephen King's Annie in `Misery,' a role for which Kathy Bates received an Oscar for Best Actress some twenty years after Walter inhabited the body of Evelyn.

    The supporting cast includes John Larch (Sergeant McCallum), Jack Ging (Frank), Irene Hervey (Madge), James McEachin (Al Monte), Clarice Taylor (Birdie) and Don Siegel (Murphy). A film that will have you on the edge of your seat by the end, `Play Misty for Me' withstands the test of time and works every bit as well today as when it was originally released. A tale from the dark side, it's engrossing entertainment that may give you second thoughts about that casual acquaintance you've just invited to your house for dinner. Eastwood chose a perfect setting for his film, using one of the most beautiful spots along the California coast as a background against which to contrast the grisly events of the story. It all adds up to a wild ride for the audience, and an auspicious debut for Eastwood as the Man Behind the Camera. I rate this one 8/10.
    7bentheredfan

    Strong-if overlong- Psychological Thriller

    I ended up watching this almost by accident... I'm currently home from college and my mother taped it and told me I would like it, and I just figured "heck, got some free time to spare, why not?". And I am glad that I did. Clint Eastwood (playing Dave Garver) is fantastic and Jessica Walter (playing Evelyn) should get a freaking medal for her performance. The supporting cast is great as well and well worth just as much interest as the main cast. Eastwood is a decent director: for the most part, the atmosphere and scenes are set well and the actors have clear, impactful direction. It's not a scary film, at least not in this day and age, but it kept me on the edge of my seat for the majority of the time. If you like psychological thrillers, check this out for sure, and if you like Clint Eastwood, you won't be disappointed.

    Now, that said, there are some problems here. Namely, this movie is overlong. I can think of two scenes that could be and should be cut. Also, there's almost an ever-present musical backdrop , and at times it works as a soundtrack. But at times, it just doesn't belong in the scene it is used in and actually is off-putting.

    Overall, however, I would recommend this as an essential to any fan of thriller films, even though it may not be a staple of the genre or one of the more popular films within it.
    7mattymatt4ever

    Before there was "Swimfan," before there was "Fatal Attraction," there was "Play Misty For Me"

    This movie, I suppose, was the first nice-guy-being-stalked-by-psycho-female thriller. And it's quite damn good. Modern audiences might feel the film was too low-key, but I found it very suspenseful. This proves you don't need eerie music (there's very little score on the soundtrack) and continuous gore to create suspense. Jessica Walter is terrifying--maybe not as terrifying as Glenn Close in "Fatal Attraction," but she comes pretty close. It's fun--and somewhat hilarious--to see Clint Eastwood as a young man with LOTS of hair. This was his first directorial effort, and he did a fine job. Over 30 years, the premise has become all-too-familiar, so unfortunately the story is predictable. Maybe 1970's audiences found it more shocking. But I was able to predict who would die and when. Nevertheless, I still found "Play Misty For Me" very entertaining and very well-acted. But what was with that jazz concert scene? Clint definitely should've left that on the cutting room floor.

    My score: 7 (out of 10)

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The first scene Clint Eastwood shot was his former director Don Siegel's cameo as Murph the bartender. As a joke, Eastwood made Siegel do eleven takes, then told the cameraman to put the film in the camera.
    • Goofs
      When Evelyn creates a disturbance at Dave's business meeting with an executive from a San Francisco station, there is a close-up of the box containing the audition tape he originally sent to the station she runs. The return address reads Dave Garver, Radio K.M.R.L. (not K.R.M.L).
    • Quotes

      Dave: Al, you ever find yourself being completely smothered by somebody?

      Al Monte: Anybody I know?

      Dave: Yeah, you met her at my house the other day.

      Al Monte: Ooooo - chicken delight! Well that's what I call some pretty good smotherin' cousin.

    • Alternate versions
      The version shown on American commercial network TV had the entire "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" sequence re-shot to remove the sex scene. Instead, what was shown as the song played was simply scenes of Eastwood and Donna Mills walking in the forest. The very brief sex scene between Eastwood and Jessica Walter was also eliminated.
    • Connections
      Featured in Terror in the Aisles (1984)
    • Soundtracks
      Misty
      Composed by Erroll Garner

      Performed by Erroll Garner

      By arrangement with Octave Music Publishing Corp.

      [Original instrumental version played leading into the closing credits]

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • November 12, 1971 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Obsesión mortal
    • Filming locations
      • Sardine Factory - 703 Wave, Monterey, California, USA(bar)
    • Production companies
      • Universal Pictures
      • Jennings Lang
      • The Malpaso Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    • Budget
      • $725,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $10,600,000
    • Gross worldwide
      • $10,600,000
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 42 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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