Merletto di mezzanotte

After watching most of her other films, with Rock Hudson, and

James Garner, this is a major departure for Doris Day. Midnight

Lace, requires an actress of considerable ability, but Day proves

up the task. Her performance is one of the best that I have every

seen. She plays the wealthy wife of Rex Harrison, who is having

financial problems, running the family firm. After receiving several

phone calls, threatening her life, she has problems proving to the

police, and Harrison, that the calls really took place.

Other threads of the story,including Roddy McDowall as the

penniless son of Day's maid, Herbert Marshall as a gambler with

money troubles, and John Gavin,as the builder, with flashbacks

from the war, there is no lack of possible suspects,who may be

threatening Day. This film has the same look and feel as ‘Dial M for Murder' so that

is as good a recommendation as anybody could want. 8 out of 10.

"Midnight Lace" is an example of a film that does have its problems, but still manages to entertain you and draw you in. It is far fetched and somewhat predictable, and I admit for me the ending was so complicated I had to re watch it to maintain my full understanding. Also there are some loose ends that aren't as well explained as they could have been.John Gavin, while really handsome, is rather bland acting wise. With its flaws though, it is perfectly watchable and entertaining helped by the stylish filming, excellent music score and the fine acting. There are some effective scenes such as when Kit falls into complete hysteria(I will explain later what I thought of Doris Day's acting in that scene), the very first scene in the fog and the elevator scene. Also the voice on the telephone; very chilling. The film's style is strongly reminiscent of an Alfred Hitchcock film, with beautiful cinematography and Day's costumes are fabulous. The music score is truly atmospheric and made most scenes from the film quite tense and suspenseful, the direction is precise enough and there is some decent scripting on the whole. Aside from Gavin, who wasn't entirely insufferable just bland, the acting was well done. Rex Harrison is very suave as the husband, Roddy MacDowell is delightfully creepy, Hermione Baddeley is great and Myrna Loy is a real scene stealer. The best performance definitely comes from Doris Day; I love her in musicals, I love her in comedy, here she shows how wonderful she equally is in drama. Her performance here is outstanding, no overacting as far as I can see, her hysteria scene was so believable and almost heart-breaking. I had difficulty hiding my dismay when I saw the reviews that accused Day of overacting. Overall, it does have its problems, but it is one movie I would definitely see again for especially Day's performance and her costumes. 7/10 Bethany Cox

The last of Doris Day's dramatic roles came with her being the terrorized wife in Midnight Lace. Henceforth she did nothing but comedies and musicals.

Not that she wasn't good in dramatic parts. Doris did well in Love Me Or Leave Me, The Man Who Knew Too Much, Storm Warning, and Julie. But in Midnight Lace she does pull all the stops out as a woman who seems to have attracted a stalker. In fact she meets the stalker in a fog bound London park near her home who threatens to kill just before the opening credits.

Doris is practically a newlywed, married to Rex Harrison a London businessman who is concerned but never is quite there enough to offer support. Even her visiting aunt Myrna Loy is thinking Doris has lost a step or two in her ladder. The only one who seems to believe her is John Gavin who is boss of a construction job next door. He's even a bit creepy himself because he knew who she was without any introduction.

The Man Who Knew Too Much was probably her best dramatic role and it was done for the master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock. But the Hitchcock film that Midnight Lace is best compared to is Dial M For Murder with Grace Kelly being the stalking victim there. Even the Scotland Yard inspector is the same in both films, John Williams.

By the way Williams unravels the truth behind the harassing phone calls in a most unusual way that the perpetrator never took into account.

The mood of Midnight Lace is somber and tense and Doris, Rex, and the rest of the cast perform their roles to perfection.

If that telephone voice doesn't give you the creeps, you are one tough cookie! Don't be fooled because this film stars Doris Day, noted for her frothy, professional virgin roles in movies with Rock Hudson, et al. This is another Ms. Day, although the movie showcases her in some great clothes. Driven to the brink of insanity by anonymous threatening phone calls which nobody believes, she plays it to the hilt. The elevator scene is especially gripping. John Gavin is totally miscast and is bland, as usual. The rest of the cast is top drawer....Rex Harrison, suave and sophisticated....Myrna Loy, as the worldly aunt, is wonderful.....and the greatest of English support players, John Williams, repeating his inspector role from Dial M for Murder. In a small part is Anthony Dawson, the perfect villain,also from Dial M for Murder. Herbert Marshall and Richard Ney are good in small roles. This looks and feels like a Hitchcock picture. You may guess the ending but it is worth the watch to see Doris Day give her all. Besides, everybody likes a good thriller and this fits the bill!

Doris Day, as an American married to an Englishman, is being terrorized in "Midnight Lace," also starring Rex Harrison, Myrna Loy, Roddy Mcdowall, and John Gavin. A scary voice speaks in the fog and calls her up on the phone - but she can't get anyone to believe her, even her beloved aunt (Loy) who wants to help but has her suspicions about her niece's mental health. The "midnight lace" is a neat title that refers to some sexy pajamas Kit (Day) buys for her Venetian trip with her husband (Harrison).

The film is based on a play, "Matilda Cried Fire" and probably owes part of its plot to "Dial M for Murder," which was also a play and made into a film by Hitchcock. John Williams is on hand in this film as in "Dial M" as a police inspector.

Unlike "Dial M for Murder," the film abounds with red herrings, so there are plenty of suspects. Roddy Mcdowall is the slimy son of Kit's housekeeper, and John Gavin is an attractive man who at one point comes to her rescue. There's also her neighbor, Peggy (Natasha Thompson). The acting is very good, the biggest and most dramatic role belonging to Day. Few people have enjoyed the variety of career that Day did. A wholesome-looking singer and vivacious actress, she was in in films from 1948. When she was in her late thirties, producer Ross Hunter took advantage of her prettiness and beautiful figure and moved her into glamor roles, making her the #1 box office star. If she's a little over the top in spots here, it's more the material than the actress, and she creates a very sympathetic and likable character. Loy, at 55, is beautiful and sexy. Harrison doesn't have a great deal to do, and Gavin is - well, Gavin, very handsome and charming. Herbert Marshall is part of the cast as well, and along with McDowall, Williams, and Thompson, make up a strong supporting cast.

This movie isn't as good as some others of the same type, but it is very enjoyable and well produced. One of those great Sunday afternoon movies.

Some trivia: A poster mentions that Harrison was distracted during the film because of the death of his wife, Kay Kendall. He was also distracted by the fact that he and Roddy McDowell had done a play together, for which McDowell had won a Tony. The elevator scene where they are all in the elevator together took a while to film so they were all stuck in a small space. McDowell said something and Harrison said, "Yes, and you can stick that Tony up your a** too."