MovieChat Forums > Play Misty for Me (1971) Discussion > When Evelyn comes to his house to kill h...

When Evelyn comes to his house to kill him...

posted 12 years ago by The_Eighth_Passenger
4 replies | jump to latest

did anybody else think this was a dream sequence? Maybe I missed something but it felt like he dodged the knife and fell to the floor and that was when he woke up. Then, shook up from his nightmare, he turned the lights on and went to check the door, etc. In the next scene with the cop and when we actually see the knife still stuck in the pillow etc I was a bit confused as I hadn't realised it was supposed to actually have happened.

I know the obvious thing here is gonna be "Didn't you see his front door was open?" and yes, of course I did but I that only added to my confusion.

Basically what I'm asking is did I just mis-watch the scene really badly or was it shot in a way that was confusing (whether deliberately or not)?

Formerly AD655321 I'm just a bloody normal bloke, a normal bloke who likes a bit of torture.

[–] thatgirl1971 12 years ago

The first time I watched it, I thought he was having a nightmare as well. It was intended to give the impression that he was dreaming and that "Misty" was playing in his head instead of from his own turntable (Evelyn presumably having put the record on herself.) The scream and the knife plunging into the pillow are so startling that I imagine many viewers don't even pick up on the open door, etc. because they are trying to recover from what just happened and they don't realize that it wasn't a dream at least until Dave answers McCallum's call.

I don't think you mis-watched it, though I wouldn't say it's deliberately confusing as much as it's an attempt to distract the viewer and then elevate the shock factor. (While I didn't believe that she got on a plane to Hawaii, I also didn't expect her to reappear in the manner in which she did and the scene is quite a jolt for most people.)

When I watch it now, it seems much clearer to me, but then I've lost count of the number of times I've watched it!

[–] Itsamoomoo 11 years ago

Well said!

[–] transmentalist 9 years ago

Evelyn's a freaking ninja, with all her "strike & fade" tactics

It was especially impressive during their final confrontation, where she manages to get the drop on him several times while wearing heels

The editing made it all the more credible

All of which makes me think, while the attack on his pillow wasn't a dream, it was left deliberately vague in order to heighten the viewer's uncertainty about her presence and ability to attack and vanish

[–] darkstorm97 9 years ago

Just watched this for the first time a couple of nights ago. I was in the same confused state as the OP. But just the fact that it was all real makes the scene even more creepy.

Call me Snake.