PLAY MISTY FOR ME (1971)

A late-starter at 41*, Clint Eastwood wisely set the bar to ‘Beginner’s Level’ for his directing debut.  Straightforward stalker stuff (scare cuts included), Clint’s a smooth-jazz radio D.J. with horndog tendencies, Donna Mills as a fiancée and mentally unstable superfan Jessica Walters falling out of balance.  Pretty slick as debuts go, and, thanks to D.P. Bruce Surtees, largely avoiding the over-lit/glossy t.v. look that was the bane of Universal Pictures’ late-‘60s/early ‘70s house style under production head Jennings Lang and studio chief Lew Wasserman.  But time hasn’t been kind to the film’s misogynist tone and all too obvious plot twists.  The whole thing would stop in its tracks if Clint & Co. showed an ounce of common sense or foresight.  Clint, in particular, so slow on the uptake, he seems to be asking for trouble.  Period gaffes not helped by that hoariest of ‘70s tropes, the likable, but expendable Black supporting character used in an ultra-bloody fashion to tee-up the rest of the mostly gore-free horror.  Casual Hollywood racism as dated as Clint’s ‘Sansabelt’ pants.*

DOUBLE-BILL/LINK:  *Not that it kept Eastwood from turning out 40+ features by the time he hit 95.  Will JUROR #2 prove to be his swansong?   https://maksquibs.blogspot.com/2024/12/juror-2-2024.html

ATTENTION MUST BE PAID:  *And an even worse ‘70s stylistic cliché, the romantic music video break; here an oceanside stroll for Eastwood & Mills, backed by Roberta Flack/The First Time Ever I saw Your Face.