The Unseen (1945 film)


The Unseen is a 1945 America film noir mystery film directed by Lewis Allen and starring Joel McCrea. It is based on the novel Midnight House by Ethel Lina White.
The film was Paramount's follow-up vehicle to The Uninvited, in which star Gail Russell surged to popularity.
Raymond Chandler was one of the writers of the script.

Plot

An old homeless woman is murdered after seeing a light through the basement window of abandoned 11 Crescent Drive. Young Barnaby Fielding witnesses this from his window at 10 Crescent Drive.
Young Elizabeth Howard arrives to the house to be governess to Barnaby and his sister Ellen, but is met with coldness from the boy who is unusually attached to their former governess, Maxine. 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, a widow who owns the shuttered-up 11 Crescent, returns to put the house up for sale. Elizabeth suspects someone is gaining access to the cellars and confides in David Fielding, the children's father but he dismisses her concerns. She turns to Dr. Evans, another neighbour and friend of the family who advises her not to call the police as David was once suspected or murdering his wife. Ellen tells Elizabeth that Barney is the one who lets the lurking man into the house in the night, at Maxine's orders. The next day a new maid arrives at the house who Elizabeth quickly realises is Maxine in disguise. David throws her out of the house. Shortly after she is found murdered outside the empty house and David is nowhere to be found, causing 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.
Out of the blue Mrs Tygarth tells her that she is also being forced to help the mysterious man in the empty, who murdered her husband is now going there every night to clean the bloody crime scene still there from decades 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 who instead kills her. Elizabeth still believes the perpetrator is David and calls on Dr. Evans for help, but David arrives and accuses Dr. Evans, who is revealed to be the killer.

Cast

Awards and Nominations

The Unseen was nominated for Best Sound Recording at the 1946 Oscars.