Don’t Look Now

Based on a story by Daphne Du Maurier, Don’t Look Now follows grieving couple John (Donald Sutherland) and Laura (Julie Christie) as they become aware of supernatural happenings during a sojourn in Venice. It’s clear immediately that filmmaker Nicolas Roeg isn’t looking to deliver a standard, run-of-the-mill thriller here, as Don’t Look Now boasts a decidedly avant-garde sensibility that’s reflected quite keenly in its various attributes – with Roeg’s less-than-conventional approach paving the way for a sometimes egregiously meandering narrative (eg there are long, drawn-out stretches in which nothing much of note or interest occurs). The picture, then, benefits from the superb work of its two stars and the ongoing inclusion of unexpectedly engrossing sequences (eg John is nearly killed when a scaffolding breaks), and there’s little doubt, as well, that Don’t Look Now‘s iconic climactic stretch is certainly as gripping and captivating as one might’ve hoped. The end result is a memorable (if lamentably erratic) endeavor that can’t quite live up to its reputation as one of the scariest movies of the 1970s, although there’s little doubt that the whole thing does pack a considerable punch from time to time.

**1/2 out of ****