‘Stranger’ a brutal thriller

Press, 29 March 1982, Page 4

‘Stranger’ a brutal thriller

at the cinema

EYES OF A STRANGER Directed by Ken Widerhorn Written .by Mark Jackson and Eric L. Bloom Although I don't want to give the impression of recommending every brutal thriller or horror movie that comes to town, I must admit that “Eyes of a Stranger” (Avon) is another good one of the first category. After the ’ excellent “Dressed to Kill" and the not-so-memorable “When a Stranger Calls," one gets the feeling that one has seen it all; and although the latest one follows the usual pattern, it is designed to still make you jump a couple of times. Both of the “Stranger” movies include all the basic ingredients: anonymous threats and heavy breathing over the telephone, the young

woman living alone in a flat or looking after a younger person who is also threatened, the frustrating lack of co-operation and understanding from the police and friends.

It is a strange and alien world we live in when even your closest friend seems as foreign .as the mysterious killer.

“Eyes of a Stranger,” however, does add a few neat twists:

In this case, the identity of the killer is known to the leading lady (Lauren Tewes, of TV’s “The Love Boat” in her first feature film). The trouble is that her boyfriend just won’t believe her.

And the most vulnerable potential victim is Miss Tewes’s younger sister (Jennifer Jason Leigh), who just happens to be blind, deaf and dumb, and certainly does not have a clue about what is going on.

The killer (John DiSanti) is as creepy as you would expect such a character to be; and you would be forgiven for mistaking him for Rod Steiger ih "No Way to Treat a Lady" which, at least, purported to be a comedy. There are good thrills when Miss Tewes searches the killer’s flat, which just happens to be opposite her own, and ends in a good balcony-hanger scene. I believe telling this about the plot'is not giving away too much, for the over-all effect depends on the unexpected scenes, such as the decapitated head in the fish tank.

Young Miss Leigh, who lost her sight and hearing in an earlier traumatic experience, regains them after her encounter with the killer.

Possibly, the film should have been called “None So Blind” instead of “Eyes of . a Stranger.”

FOOTNOTE: Rumours that this film was made by John Carpenter, director of “Halloween” and “The Fog,” are incorrect. The only association with other horror movies is that it was made by Georgetown Productions Films, which was also responsible for “Friday the 13th."