Night Has a Thousand Eyes


See also The Night Has a Thousand Eyes.
Night Has a Thousand Eyes is a 1948 film noir, starring Edward G. Robinson and directed by John Farrow. The screenplay was written by Barré Lyndon and Jonathan Latimer. The film is based on the novel of the same name by Cornell Woolrich, originally published under the pseudonym "George Hopley".
The film includes the original Angel's Flight on Bunker Hill in downtown Los Angeles as a location.
The copyright is owned by Universal MCA, but is not in release in the US. A German import DVD is available. The Film Noir Foundation supports a new DVD release in the US.

Synopsis

The film opens in New Orleans, where John Triton is "The Mental Wizard", a nightclub fortune teller. During a show one evening, Triton suddenly urges an audience member to rush home, cautioning that her son is in danger. As the story unfolds, Triton struggles with his new-found psychic ability, as all of his relentlessly bleak predictions prove accurate. Jerome Cowan plays Whitney Courtland, Triton's best friend, who becomes wealthy using tips from the now-psychic Triton.

Cast

The film is generally praised for its gloomy adaptation of Woolrich's writing. In his book Art of Noir, Eddie Muller writes: "No film more faithfully captured Woolrich's sense of doomed predestination than Night Has a Thousand Eyes." Time Out Film Guide, however, gives the thriller a negative review:
"Aside from the fine opening sequence -- Lund's rescue of Gail Russell from the brink of suicide, and discovery of her mortal terror of the stars -- a disappointing adaptation of Cornell Woolrich's superb novel."

Music

The film's main theme has gone on to become a jazz standard, having been recorded by Horace Silver, Carmen McRae, Harry Beckett, Paul Desmond and John Coltrane, among others.

Streaming audio