“I know you’re there.”
synopsis
Susy Hendrix, a recently blinded woman living in a New York apartment, becomes the unwitting target of a trio of criminals searching for a heroin-filled doll hidden in her home. The con men devise an elaborate deception to trick her into revealing its location. But as Susy gradually pieces together their scheme, she realizes the only way to survive is to level the playing field — by turning the darkness to her advantage.
The final confrontation takes place almost entirely in pitch blackness.
pairs well with ...
mini-review
This is suspense stripped to its essentials. One apartment. One vulnerable protagonist. One escalating psychological duel.
Hepburn gives one of her strongest performances — restrained, dignified, and increasingly fierce. There’s no melodrama in her blindness; she plays intelligence under pressure. And Alan Arkin? Genuinely terrifying. His menace is erratic and unpredictable, which makes him far scarier than a smooth mastermind.
The film’s stage origins show — but in a good way. The confined setting amplifies the tension. And when Susy methodically smashes every lightbulb in the apartment to plunge the room into darkness? That’s one of the great suspense payoffs in cinema.
It earns every heartbeat.
Total darkness. No phone. No interruptions. You want to feel that last scene in your chest.
Absurdist's Corner
Three seasoned criminals terrorized by a woman with a kitchen knife in the dark. Turns out competence drops dramatically when you can’t see.
fun facts
Hepburn received an Academy Award nomination for this role.
The film was adapted from a Broadway play by Frederick Knott.
Theaters were reportedly advised to lower the lights slowly during the final scene to heighten the shock effect.