Review of Don't Look Now (1973) by Ricardo O — 29 Oct 2010

Based on a short story by accomplished writer Daphne du Maurier, Don't Look Now tells the story of a couple, John and Laura Baxter (Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie, respectively in what might be their most accomplished performances), who are devastated by the drowning of their daughter in a tragic accident at home. They decide to make a change of scenery where they can also work to cope with their loss. They go to Venice, Italy where John is contracted to restore one of the many ancient gothic churches in the city. While he is doing his job, Laura befriends two strange, elderly sisters, one of whom is blind and is claimed to be a clairvoyant who is in contact with their deceased daughter. She is drawn to them but John finds them to be a bit unsettling and probably deceiving Laura. All the while there is a serial killer on the loose that's been eluding the police. John starts catching glimpses of a child-like person in a red raincoat that kind of resembles his dead daughter but whenever he begins to pursue the person, the person vanishes. John begins to question is own sanity as well as that of his wife. He starts to believe that Laura has started go under the control of the two elderly sisters. The sisters tell Laura that they believe her husband also has what is known as the gift of "second sight". He may be able to see things that will happen in the near future. Tension is slowly built up to the inevitable climax in an old bell tower where John comes face to face with the child-like figure in red. But he realizes too late that the visions he was having a premonitions of a gruesome end.

With visual motifs such as breaking glass, light on the water, and the color red throughout, Nicholas Roeg creates a dreamlike atmosphere that is as dark as it is beautiful. Roeg's vision of a dark labyrinthine Venice all the more increases its dreamlike qualities from the lighting to camera movements and the quick zooms. The editing is a very unorthodox style but it is typical of Roeg's style as he intercuts from footage of John working with pictures, most notably one of a figure with a red hood in a church and what his children are doing outside as well as the love scene where it intercuts from them having sex to them putting their clothes on afterward. Where the sex is has them close to each other, the dressing up has them separated. And then there are times when John gets his premonitions. It's quite odd but done so brilliantly. The cinematography is excellent as all films by Roeg are (naturally as he was an accomplished cinematographer prior to going into directing). The color red motif and the twist ending would also go on to influence many filmmakers most notably M. Night Syamalan and his breakthrough The Sixth Sense. The score written by Pino Donaggio (his first) is really good and plays an important role in the film. There are times when it provokes terror and times where it creates such beauty.

Don't Look Now is great on the eyes as it has some really shots, especially those that have the color red somewhere in them. It is one of the best examples of a famous horror/thriller film with arthouse qualities. It is a great psychological thriller with moments of great suspense and shock that make it one of the greatest horror films of all time. This is a highly recommend film for those looking for a great horror film to watch that does not try to dumb down the audience or try to shock audiences just for the hell of it and instead wants to make the viewer think which is a quality almost all horror films are lacking in these days. Great film. 10/10.