Midnight Lace is a 1960 American mystery-thriller film starring Doris Day and Rex Harrison, directed by David Miller. The screenplay by Ivan Goff and Ben Roberts is based on the play Matilda Shouted Fire by Janet Green.
The film was remade as a television movie by Universal Television for NBC in 1981.
Plot
A newlywed, American heiress Kit Preston is living with her financier husband Tony on Grosvenor Square in London. One night, as she is returning home in a dense fog, Kit is startled by an eerie, electronic-like voice threatening to kill her. Tony tries to convince her she has been the victim of a practical joker and suggests they take a trip to Venice for the honeymoon they never had.
The following day, business matters force Tony to cancel a lunch date with his wife at the last minute. As she returns home, a falling girder from the construction site adjacent to her building nearly hits her, but she is pushed to safety by contractor Brian Younger, who startles her when he addresses her by name. Inside she encounters Malcolm Stanley, the shiftless son of her maid Nora, who annoys her with his unctuous behavior.
Soon after he departs, the person who threatened her the night before calls and repeats his intention to kill her. Neighbor Peggy Thompson urges Tony to bring Kit to Scotland Yard to discuss the situation. After questioning her, Inspector Byrnes suggests to Tony he suspects Kit is merely a lonely wife in need of attention.
Tony must cancel the trip to Italy due to continuing problems at work. Kit receives another call, but before Tony can take the phone to hear the voice, she hysterically hangs up. The couple meet Kit's aunt Bea Coleman and Bea's former beau Charles Manning at a nightclub, where Bea questions Tony about her niece's nervous behavior. When Tony repeats the inspector's suspicions, Bea wonders if he may be right.
The next day, Kit is trapped in her apartment building elevator when the power goes out. She begins to panic when she hears footsteps ominously approaching in the dark, and is relieved to discover it is Brian, who has come to rescue her. He takes her to a local pub, where he relates an experience he had in a burning tank during World War II. Kit is disturbed by his intense manner and returns home.
Kit, Tony and Aunt Bea are at the ballet when Tony's assistant Daniel Graham calls him away to tell him it appears £1 million has been embezzled from the firm. Daniel knows company treasurer Manning has large gambling debts and suggests he is responsible for the loss. Meanwhile, Malcolm confronts Kit at the ballet and asks for money. When she hesitates, he vaguely threatens her.
As time passes, Kit becomes increasingly paranoid. Her reports of more calls and a visit from a mysterious stranger no one else sees are met with skepticism by everyone. She sees the man she had claimed came to the apartment in the street, and soon she is pushed in front of an approaching bus. Now frantic, Kit begs Peggy to lie and say she heard the voice on the phone, but her plan backfires when Tony reveals their phone has been out of order.
Now certain that Kit is delusional, Tony and Bea take her to a psychiatrist who believes she may be suffering from a split personality. Tony decides to take Kit to Venice immediately and asks Bea to help her pack while he attends a board meeting.
Before he leaves, the phone rings and Tony hears the voice. He calls Inspector Byrnes and asks him to come to the apartment, then tells Kit he will pretend to leave the building, secretly return, and hopefully catch the man who has been stalking her.
As soon as Tony leaves, the caller phones to announce he is coming to kill Kit. A man with a gun enters the apartment. Tony tackles him and knocks him unconscious.
Much to Kit's astonishment, Tony then confesses he and Peggy are responsible for everything that has transpired. They plan to kill Kit and make her death appear to be a suicide prompted by her mental illness so Tony can collect her inheritance and repay the money he stole from his business.
The man with the gun regains consciousness. He turns out to be Peggy's husband Roy, who planned to murder Peggy after learning about her affair with Tony.
Inspector Byrnes arrives and reveals he had tapped Kit's phone and knew she was in trouble when Tony pretended to call the police. Brian and Bea give comfort to Kit while the inspector arrests her husband and his mistress.
Cast
Critical reception
The Time critic called the film "another of those recurrent thrillers (Sorry, Wrong Number, Gaslight, The Two Mrs. Carrolls, Julie) in which a dear, sweet, innocent girl is pursued by a shadowy figure of evil who threatens her with all sorts of insidious molestation . . . Like its predecessors, Midnight Lace is not very interesting in itself, but it is uncomfortably fascinating when considered as one of the persistent fantasies of a monogamous society . . . False leads trail off in at least seven directions, but the climax of the film will come to most mystery buffs as no surprise . . . Doris Day wears a lot of expensive clothes, and in attempting to portray the all-American missus behaves like such a silly, spoiled, hysterical, middle-aged Lolita that many customers may find themselves less in sympathy with her plight than with the villain's murderous intentions." [1]
Awards and nominations
Doris Day was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress - Motion Picture Drama but lost to Greer Garson in Sunrise at Campobello. Irene was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Color Costume Design but lost to Arlington Valles for Spartacus.
References
External links
