IMDb RATING
6.0/10
6.1K
YOUR RATING
A Manhattan psychiatrist probes a patient's murder and falls for the victim's mysterious mistress.A Manhattan psychiatrist probes a patient's murder and falls for the victim's mysterious mistress.A Manhattan psychiatrist probes a patient's murder and falls for the victim's mysterious mistress.
- Awards
- 2 nominations
Frederikke Borge
- Heather Wilson
- (as Rikke Borge)
Randy Jurgensen
- Car Thief
- (as Randy Jurgenson)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaAfter making this film, writer/director Robert Benton said that he regretted the emphasis placed by critics upon its being a Alfred Hitchcock imitation. Benton said that he had intended it to be more a modern equivalent of the 1940s wave of noir thrillers about psychoanalysis (a group of films of which Hitchcock's Spellbound (1945) is the most famous example, but not the only one) and that the directors he was actively using as direct influences on him were Jacques Tourneur and Fritz Lang, with the script being heavily influenced by Lang's The Woman in the Window (1944). Benton summed up the situation saying, "This (genre) territory is so staked out by Hitchcock that there is nothing you can do that won't remind someone of him."
- GoofsAs the woman with the scarf on her head first walks into Central Park the heels on her shoes are a thick, low to mid height style but as she continues to walk through the park the heels on her shoes change to a higher, thinner style heel.
- Quotes
Doctor Sam Rice: Now listen to me! On account of you, I'm an accessory to something. I don't know what! I'm withholding evidence. I'm obstructing justice. I'm gonna get my license revoked if I'm not thrown into jail first. And on top of that, I've just spent fifteen thousand dollars for a painting I don't even like!
- ConnectionsReferenced in The Last Horror Film (1982)
Featured review
Intriguing
Convoluted suspenser that showcases both Scheider and Streep. It's not a flick to tune in and out of. The plot's tricky, with a number of flashbacks that got somewhat confusing for me. Anyway, Scheider's an emotionally detached psychiatrist who's slowly unwound by the mysterious Streep as he delves further into the stabbing death of her lover and his former patient, Bynum. Scheider's convincing as Dr. Rice whose emotions are hidden behind a professional demeanor. Doing that meaningfully, as Scheider does, strikes me as challenging for any actor. Meanwhile, Streep also scores as the emotionally troubled Brooke, who appears the obvious culprit in Bynum's murder. Crucially, however, it's hard to tell what's going on behind that unstable outer woman. Together, the two characters are little short of riveting as they interact in ambivalent fashion. Also look for renowned actress Jessica Tandy as Rice's sober-sided mother in what appears a tacked-on role that's nevertheless well played.
Though the screenplay's murky, perhaps appropriately so, there're a number of grabber scenes, like the dream sequence with the sinister little girl or Rice's walk into Central Park. However, the climax appears clumsily contrived in order to get a conventional ending. Too bad, since the movie's mood and well-placed ambiguities deserve better. All in all, it's an intriguing movie that remains a testament to its two leads.
Though the screenplay's murky, perhaps appropriately so, there're a number of grabber scenes, like the dream sequence with the sinister little girl or Rice's walk into Central Park. However, the climax appears clumsily contrived in order to get a conventional ending. Too bad, since the movie's mood and well-placed ambiguities deserve better. All in all, it's an intriguing movie that remains a testament to its two leads.
Helpful•41
- dougdoepke
- Jul 7, 2019
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Details
Box office
- Budget
- $10,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $5,979,947
- Gross worldwide
- $5,979,947
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![Meryl Streep and Roy Scheider in Still of the Night (1982)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzUxOTY2NjAtNTBlOC00ZDAzLWEzY2MtMTY0ZThhMjA4ZjZlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMjUzOTY1NTc@._V1_QL75_UX90_CR0,1,90,133_.jpg)