Night Watch (1973)

Self-important, over-dramatic, uninspired.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Great movie. Not sure what people expected but I found it highly entertaining.

This movie feels like it was made purely to piss off people who want good shows

...and Elizabeth Taylor freaking out!Night Watch from 1973 is based on a Broadway play that starred Joan Hackett. Taylor is Ellen Wheeler, married to her busy husband John (Laurence Harvey). They currently have Ellen's best friend Sarah (Billie Whitelaw) visiting. Sarah is having a clandestine affair and sneaks out to meet him. One night, during a storm, Ellen swears she saw a murder victim in the old house across the way. Raising her suspicions is the fact that the man (Robert Lang) who lives in the guest house is digging what looks like a grave. The next day, trees have been planted on it. Ellen's past comes into play here, as she keeps remembering an incident from years ago.The police, however, can't find anything; Ellen then sees another murder victim and lives in a state of hysteria, paranoid and suspicious of everyone and everything. Her husband has a psychiatrist friend (Tony Britton) speak with her, and it's decided it is best if she goes away for a little rest.This is a fun movie, where it seems there is always a horrible storm raging. It contains elements of some other films, as mentioned above. Taylor, who at this point was making a lot of schlock, does a fine job as the unstable Ellen.I did know how this ended ahead of time, having seen part of it ages and ages ago, so I didn't have the twist-ending thrill others have had. Nevertheless, it was very entertaining.One of Taylor's better films from this period - in the hands of better director, it could have been much stronger, since the story and cast are strong. As it is, it's worth watching.

Many Elizabeth Taylor films seem to border on melodramatic shlock. Some of them are overly dramatic. She does lend a special vulnerability, a little fragility, just enough to draw you in even though she knows what you are really watching probably isn't worth the trouble.This particular film would be good if you were home with a cold, or home and didn't want to go out in the rain, or maybe woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't go back to sleep. Ironically, everything I mentioned she seems to be suffering from in the film. Or is she? She seems to be going mad, seeing things that aren't there. And wouldn't you know it? Her husband is using his wife's instability against her. Or is she really unstable? There is indeed a clever little plot twist at the end of the film but it all seems rather dated and tired. Like one long version of McMillan and Wife or Barnaby Jones. We've seen different versions of this story before with different actors and actress'. It isn't anything new or brilliant but it isn't horrible either. You won't be telling your friends about this at dinner or over drinks though.

It says much about the decline in Elizabeth Taylor's career that she wound up in such a routine film, and even more that it was one of her better films of the 1970's. The plot is about a wealthy, recently remarried widow who is being menaced by someone unknown and fears for her own life. However, she recently recovered from a mental breakdown and is suspected by some to be losing her sanity again. Her stockbroker husband (Lawrence Harvey) and friends want to help, but things are not what they seem. This storyline was old hat even back in 1973. It's the same kind of material which was covered by "Midnight Lace," which this closely resembles, along with "Gaslight," "Sorry, Wrong Number," "Suspicion," "Diabolique," "Sudden Fear," and many others. Nothing in this film is done all that badly, in spite of a slow beginning. Taylor gives an adequate performance, and she gets to wear some glamorous clothing and is surrounded by attractive sets. Also, there is a clever twist ending which delivers some suspense. But none of the film delivers the kind of excitement that it's supposed to. Perhaps we already have seen this story in one form or another far too often and it fails to deliver anything new.

I was 13 when this movie was made and living in Australia it was probably about 2 years after its release that we got to see it. SO I was about 15 or 16 and had seen plenty of thriller movies before this one. I loved it so much I went back and saw it another 3 times. Seeing Liz Taylor in a completely vicious role at the end of the movie did it for me. Clever plot, good acting, very graphic in the double murder scene and haunting images throughout the movie.I just found it available on Amazon and bought it for "old time sake". I'm now 46. Will be interesting to see if it has stood the test of time as far as thrill factor goes. I'm just so glad I found it after all these years. Let you know after I have re- watched it.