NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES (1948)

Paramount Pictures, 80m 56s

After a man acquires the power of second sight, he comes to understand his inexplicable ability as more of a curse than a blessing. He becomes a loner, effectively closed off from the world around him. When he realizes he may be able to alter one of his visions, he senses such intervention may cost him his life. If that brief plot summary brings to mind director David Cronenberg's THE DEAD ZONE (1983), based on the novel by Stephen King, it should. One wonders if King found some inspiration for his story in director John Farrow's NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES, or perhaps in that film's source material written by Cornell Woolrich. After screening the Farrow film, it occurred to me that THE DEAD ZONE might best be discussed in film noir terms, but that will be an essay for another day.

NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES is among the best calibrated of noir films that focus on an alienated individual doomed to a bleak outcome. Like many noirs of this period, it begins at the end, but then journeys backward in time to shed light on what brought the major characters to where they find themselves. In this case the flashback takes us back 20 years to 1928 Louisiana, where John Triton (Edward G. Robinson) makes his living in a "first-class phony" mind reading act. Billed as "Triton, the Mental Wizard," he is flanked by his fiancée Jenny (Virginia Bruce) and his close friend Whitney Courtland (Jerome Cowan). Each night the trio stands before appreciative spectators, all primed to believe in Triton's reputed clairvoyance. One night Triton is inclined to believe it too after he learns his sudden impression of a boy in danger proves stunningly accurate. Then a 10-1 longshot comes through at the horse track per Triton's intuition. Triton grows increasingly fearful of his forewarnings after the death of a newsboy (Georgie Nokes), but Courtland repeatedly reaps pecuniary rewards. Winning bets on horse races lead Courtland to stock market success and tracts of land rich with oil in Oklahoma. After a particularly disturbing vision drifts through his consciousness, Triton abandons Jenny and Courtland. "I'd become a sort of a reverse zombie. I was living in a world already dead, and I alone knowing it."

As Courtland rises to the top of society thanks entirely to Triton's incredible powers of precognition, Triton is absorbed into oppressive noir nothingness within Los Angeles, where he lives alone and operates the Triton Novelty Co., a small mail order service. The mentally traumatized film noir figure was a common sighting in noir output of the late 1940s, almost a prerequisite, i.e. HIGH WALL (1947), NIGHTMARE ALLEY (1947), POSSESSED (1947), MOONRISE (1948), SO EVIL MY LOVE (1948), THE CROOKED WAY (1949) and WHIRLPOOL (1949). The psychologically haunted protagonist of NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES is Triton, a man who once had a place in society when he pretended to be a mentalist. In one of the genre's most darkly ironic twists, Triton comes to possess actual paranormal power only to be destroyed by it after two decades of misery. Some of his dialog is instructive as he describes his life of anonymity in the Bunker Hill neighborhood using absolute film noir verbiage:

"It was an odd part of the city, but I liked it. It was a strictly 'no questions asked' area; people minding their own business and letting you mind yours. Even after 15 years my social conversation didn't exceed 25 words a day...it was a lonely life..."

Other than significant financial gain for his friend Courtland (a dubious benefit as it turns out), there is no plus side for Triton that comes from his foresight. He has no control over his premonitions, which strike without warning and always seem to bring the worst imaginable news. Triton effectively forfeits his fiancée Jenny to his friend Courtland in the hope of altering his vision of her death, nonetheless she dies during childbirth. Triton eventually envisions Courtland's death by plane crash, but is unable to prevent it, try as he might. Then Triton foresees the imminent death of Jean (Gail Russell), the daughter of Jenny and Courtland. Ultimately both Triton and Jean join the ranks of film noir's walking dead, those unenviable folks who can see their own demise. This was another common film noir trope of the mid-to-late 1940s, as seen in THE DARK CORNER (1946), THE KILLERS (1946), OUT OF THE PAST (1947), RIDE THE PINK HORSE (1947) and ACT OF VIOLENCE (1948).

Portrait of Jenny

In a sequence that connects the main protagonist directly to the viewer, Triton posits he is not that different from anyone present at the Courtland estate:

"You've been there, all of you. You've had experiences:  telegrams that you knew the contents of before you opened them, places that seem familiar though you've never been in them before, and under the emotional stress of tragedy, have you noticed how everything becomes disturbed and unreal as the mind tries to escape into time? And in dreams, it escapes too; not always into fantasy, sometimes the dreams come true."

By inference, none of us are much different than Triton as he attempts to explain how unremarkable he believes himself to be. The notion that the lead protagonist could be anybody is a powerful attribute for any film noir; it allows the audience to identify with people who are not always likeable, though it is easy to sympathize with Triton as he copes as best he can against unyielding film noir doctrines. Later at the police station, he reminds us of the absurdity of his position, how powerless he is within the context of film noir conditions:

"This gift, which I never asked for and I don't understand, has brought me only unhappiness."

That moment of recognition extends to Elliott Carson (John Lund), the oil geologist. The man of science maintains a skeptical attitude throughout the film, but ultimately comes to a certain respect for the fatalistic noir universe and its mysterious functions. He admits scientists indeed are conducting studies in the area of second sight, which in itself seems to legitimize the possibility of such phenomena.

A diagram of interconnected film noir themes and motifs is created through an emphasis on darkness, low camera angles, elaborate staircases, mirrors, an idealized portrait and an overwhelming sense of dread. Repeatedly Triton's grim prognostications are associated with rainfall. Of course rain-soaked streets provide a film-friendly terrain for noir sequences, but there is a deeper meaning attached to water, which is linked symbolically to ominous transitions in film noir narratives such as DOUBLE INDEMNITY (1944), THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW (1944), MILDRED PIERCE (1945), BRUTE FORCE (1947), PORTRAIT OF JENNIE (1948) and SUNSET BOULEVARD (1950).

The noir mirror

A veteran of some of the genre's undisputed classics, including DOUBLE INDEMNITY, THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW, SCARLET STREET (1945), THE STRANGER (1946), KEY LARGO (1948), HOUSE OF STRANGERS (1949) and ILLEGAL (1955), Edward G. Robinson is at his most affable here as a man plagued by what many would assume to be a wonderful gift. Director of photography John F. Seitz possessed a noir credit list arguably as impressive as Robinson's, including DOUBLE INDEMNITY, CALCUTTA (1946), THE BIG CLOCK (1948), APPOINTMENT WITH DANGER (1950) and SUNSET BOULEVARD. The compositions captured by Seitz for NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES now can be appreciated in the recently released single-layered Blu-ray edition from Kino Lorber. The new 2K master does look a little darker than what I would have preferred, though grain level is appropriate. Minor speckles, scratches and artifacts are evident throughout the presentation, but none of these little annoyances detract from the viewing experience in any significant way.

The new Blu-ray disc features an audio commentary track recorded by Imogen Sara Smith, a voice to be trusted on all things Hollywood. Her research is so thorough it really poses a problem for those of us trying to take notes; this commentary in particular made me appreciate the pause button on my remote control. Smith approaches the film from every imaginable angle. She notes that the supernatural element is uncharacteristic of the film noir; consequently the lead protagonist is not the fraud Stan Carlisle (Tyrone Power) is in the prior year's NIGHTMARE ALLEY. Also unusual for a noir exercise is that none of the major characters are motivated by greed, lust or hatred—only fear of their own mortality. Noir stories often are concerned with the power of the past over the present, and that is true to some extent in this film given the textbook flashback format. But the more meaningful focus is on Triton's unpleasant premonitions about the future, which makes this film noir especially cynical in its thematic structure. Something that seems like a gift in reality is a heavy cross to bear. Smith observes the adaptation (by screenwriters Barré Lyndon and Jonathan Latimer) is not particularly faithful to Cornell Woolrich's source novel (NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES, 1945, written under the pseudonym of George Hopley). Triton was not the lead character in the novel, which is even more obsessed with the inevitability of death than the film version. The doom-laden novel was constructed around Courtland and his daughter Jean, with Triton as a secondary character.

The film's second reel comes with a somewhat incongruous change in tone thanks in part to the presence of William Demarest, who portrays the wisecracking Lieutenant Shawn of the homicide division. Demarest was an actor noted more for his work with director Preston Sturges than film noir productions. As the action plays out at the Courtland home, there is more of a comic flair to the proceedings than noir fans might expect or want. Smith suggests this might be explained by the fact this film is a product of Paramount, a studio not known for gritty films. Thus the stable of actors called upon for supporting roles are more notable for their achievements in genres other than film noir. At this point director John Farrow is best remembered for his work in film noir, i.e. CALCUTTA, THE BIG CLOCK, ALIAS NICK BEAL (1949), WHERE DANGER LIVES (1950), HIS KIND OF WOMAN (1951) and A BULLET IS WAITING (1954). His noir films are united by consistent themes that include control, manipulation, loss of identity, fatalism and absurdism. He favored the complexity of long takes with multiple actors in the frame. This approach was more demanding of everyone involved, and demanding he was. Farrow had a reputation for being a tyrant on the set with a horrible mean streak. He also was "a chronic philanderer" according to Smith. The House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) impacted almost every film for which Smith has submitted a commentary track. HUAC really hurt Edward G. Robinson's career; NIGHT HAS A THOUSAND EYES came toward the end of his run as an A film actor. The story of Gail Russell is far more tragic; the underconfident actress drank herself to death at the age of 36. Smith points out Angels Flight in the Bunker Hill district of Downtown Los Angeles was a landmark film noir setting that formed the backdrop for genre entries such as SOMEWHERE IN THE NIGHT (1946), ACT OF VIOLENCE (1949), M (1951) and the great KISS ME DEADLY (1955). The usual assortment of theatrical trailers for discs available from Kino Lorber completes the supplemental package.

The song "The Night Has a Thousand Eyes" was composed by Jerry Brainin, with lyrics by Buddy Bernier. Since the movie made its theatrical run, the song has become a jazz standard, recorded by a vast assortment of artists such as John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Horace Silver, UAB SuperJazz (featuring Ellis Marsalis), Harry Belafonte, Paul Desmond (with Jim Hall), Toshiko Akiyoshi, Pharoah Sanders, Irene Kral, Harry Beckett, Petula Clark, Gloria Lynne, and Carmen McRae.