The Unseen (1945 film)

The Unseen
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Lewis Allen
Written by	Adaptation: Hagar Wilde Ken Englund
Screenplay by	Hagar Wilde Raymond Chandler
Based on	the novel Her Heart in Her Throat by Ethel Lina White
Produced by	John Houseman
Starring	Joel McCrea Gail Russell Herbert Marshall Phyllis Brooks Isobel Elsom Mikhail Rasumny Tom Tully Nona Griffith Richard Lyon
Narrated by	Ray Collins
Cinematography	John F. Seitz
Edited by	Doane Harrison
Music by	Ernst Toch
Distributed by	Paramount Pictures
Release date	May 12, 1945 (1945-05-12) (United States)
Running time	80 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English

The Unseen is a 1945 American mystery film directed by Lewis Allen and starring Joel McCrea. It's based on the 1942 novel Midnight House (US title: Her Heart in Her Throat) by Ethel Lina White.

The film was Paramount's follow-up vehicle to The Uninvited (1944), in which star Gail Russell surged to popularity.

Raymond Chandler was one of the writers of the script.^[1]

Plot[]

An old homeless woman is murdered after seeing a light through the basement window of abandoned 11 Crescent Drive. Young Barney Fielding witnesses this from his window next door at number 10.

Elizabeth Howard (Gail Russell), arrives at the house to be governess to Barney and his sister, Ellen, but is met with aggression from the boy who is unusually attached to their former governess, Maxine, and tells her: "You're my enemy! I hate you!" Elizabeth's room overlooks the garden of the eerie house next door, and she finds a watch that belonged to the murdered old woman in her dressing table.

Over the next few weeks, Marian Tygarth (Isobel Elsom), a widow who owns shuttered-up 11 Crescent Drive, returns to put the house up for sale. Elizabeth suspects someone is gaining access to the cellars and confides in David Fielding (Joel McCrea), the children's father, but he dismisses her concerns. She turns to Dr. Evans (Herbert Marshall), a neighbor and friend of the family, who advises her not to call the police as David shouldn't like it (unknown to Ellen, David was once suspected of murdering his wife). Ellen tells Elizabeth that Barney is the one who lets the lurking man into the house at night, on Maxine's orders. The next day, the employment agency tells Elizabeth they cannot send anyone over that day. However, a new maid arrives at the house, and Elizabeth eventually realizes she is Maxine (Phyllis Brooks); David tries to throw Maxine out of the house. Shortly after, she is found murdered outside the empty house. David is nowhere to be found, which causes the police to consider him the prime suspect. After the police leave, Mrs. Tygarth comes over to keep Elizabeth company after the children have gone to bed.

Mrs. Tygarth tells Ellen that the man who murdered her husband is next door as they speak. She says that she is being forced to help the mysterious man, who has been visiting there every night, to clean the bloody crime scene from 12 years before. She knows she is his next victim and tells Elizabeth she is going to call the police, but actually goes next door to kill the still unknown man; he kills her instead. Elizabeth still suspects the perpetrator might be David, and calls on Dr. Evans for help. David arrives and accuses Dr. Evans, who is revealed to be the killer, which he became when he once thought that he could have Mrs. Tygarth for himself.

Cast[]

Awards and Nominations[]

The Unseen was nominated for Best Sound Recording at the 1946 Oscars.^[2]

References[]

External links[]

Wikiquote has quotations related to: The Unseen (1945 film)

• The Unseen at IMDb
• The Unseen at AllMovie
• The Unseen at the TCM Movie Database
• The Unseen film clip on YouTube

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