Wait Until Dark (1967)

Wait Until Dark
Directed by Terence Young
Robert Carrington and Jane Howard-Hammerstein from a play by Frederick Knott
1967/US
Warner Bros.
Repeat viewing/Netflix rental

[box] Susy Hendrix: Do I have to be the world champion blind lady?[/box]

This movie has lost none of its gripping terror since original release.  And what a great cast!

A young beauty transports heroin from Europe to New York hidden inside a doll.  Once there, however, she passes the doll to an unsuspecting stranger instead of delivering it to the intended recipients.  She will not be long for this world.

The stranger is Sam Hendrix (Efram Zimbalist Jr.).  He takes it back to the apartment he shares with wife Susy (Audrey Hepburn).  Susy was blinded in a car accident a year ago. Sam cuts her no slack whatsoever, demanding that she be self-reliant to the maximum extent possible.

Good thing too as some very bad guys will be along to acquire the doll post-haste.  The leader of the gang is Roat (Alan Arkin), a psychopath who combines evil, oiliness, and smarts in equal measure.  His henchmen are clean-cut Mike Talman (Richard Crenna) and ex-policeman Carlino (Jack Weston.

The men begin by trying to get the doll by gaining Susy’s confidence.  I’m going to say nothing about further plot points except to say that the story moves on to an absolutely terrifying climax.

[box] You don’t get nominated for being mean to Audrey Hepburn – Alan Arkin[/box]

I can’t think of anything more terrifying than a home invasion unless it is experience one while blind.  The screenplay is tight, the acting – especially by Hepburn and Arkin – is great, and the Mancini-penned score adds to the suspense.  Highly recommended.

Audrey Hepburn was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress.