Rainey Dawn
First of all, forget all about The Donna Reed Show - this movie shows us Donna Reed the actress not the TV mom we've come to know her by. She plays a good role as Barbra here! Secondly, this is a good suspenseful mystery-thriller. It sounds strange by the description of the film: A blind detective & his dog who help a woman, Norma Lawry, with a murder case. Norma has a step-daughter, Barbra, that has her mind poisoned against her by her former lover, Paul Gerente. But Paul ends up dead, Barbra blames Norma for murdering him and Norma seeks the help of a friend the blind detective Duncan 'Mac' Maclain. Sure the description sounds odd but you'll just have to watch it to see how it plays out - then it'll all fall into place.Third, I like the film and I recommend it to those that like the older mystery-thrillers speckled with comedy.8/10
tavm
With the new "Dallas" series up and running on TNT to high ratings (No surprise it was the No. 1 cable show last night), I'm devoting the summer to reviewing many movies and TV appearances of these regular and recurring players of the original series here on IMDb in chronological order. So it is that I'm starting in 1942 when young adult Donna Reed-who became Miss Ellie No. 2 during the 1984-85 season when originator Barbara Bel Geddes had to temporarily leave for health reasons-was starting out as a contract player at M-G-M where the original "Dallas" was partially shot for interiors. In contrast to her usually wholesome roles like that of It's a Wonderful Life-though her Mary Hatch wasn't above making her mother think George Bailey was, well you know-here she plays a teen girl who's dating a much older man that was once a lover of her stepmother (Ann Harding). Since both her character and that of Harding's play actresses, it's a particular pleasure when Ms. Reed acts condescending to Ms. Harding as they both seem to talk as if they're rehearsing for some play. Anyway, the real star is Edward Arnold as the blind detective Duncan Maclain who's not above creating some scenes himself as he tries to both solve a murder and uncover a Nazi scheme with the able assist of his dog Friday. Directed by eventual master filmmaker Fred Zinnemann, he provides enough atmosphere that makes this movie rise a little above its B-movie roots. There's also some amusements from sidekicks Allen Jenkins and Mantan Moreland with the latter just two years away from being Charlie Chan's regular manservant Birmingham Brown. Really, all I'll say now is Eyes in the Night is worth a look.
Azstu
I thought this was a great movie. I found the concept of a lead blind detective and a very active smart sidekick, the dog made this a very unique movie to watch. Great use of the fact he was blind in some scenes. Not sure if the dog made it into other movies, but one very smart animal and this added another layer to the movie.The acting seemed a little stilted, but overall I found this to be very entertaining, and somewhat groundbreaking with the mix of character traits, plot and action scenes. Highly recommended.
rjtrules
If you're a dog lover like me, you'll find this one hard not to like! Good old "Friday" steals this show-with some able assistance from a very keen and rugged blind man. I found this one easy to follow and it kept my interest all the way. A really neat mix of intrigue, mystery, and humor to boot. Oh...and some espionage thrown in as is per this era's thematics. The gal who plays the enemy is quite wicked! This is a murder mystery that will get you smiling! A fun and easy frolic minus a tangled plot that uses all the "senses". Oh, and a young Donna Reed.......not bad at all. This one makes Rin Tin Tin and Lassie look like amateurs!
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