Eyes of Laura Mars (1978)

A famous fashion photographer develops a disturbing ability to see through the eyes of a killer.

Director:

Irvin Kershner

Writers:

John Carpenter (screenplay), David Zelag Goodman (screenplay)

Stars:

Faye Dunaway, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Dourif

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Faye Dunaway	...	Laura Mars
Tommy Lee Jones	...	John Neville
Brad Dourif	...	Tommy Ludlow
Rene Auberjonois	...	Donald Phelps
Raul Julia	...	Michael Reisler (as R.J.)
Frank Adonis	...	Sal Volpe
Lisa Taylor	...	Michele
Darlanne Fluegel	...	Lulu
Rose Gregorio	...	Elaine Cassell
Bill Boggs	...	Himself
Steve Marachuk	...	Robert
Meg Mundy	...	Doris Spenser
Marilyn Meyers	...	Sheila Weissman
Gary Bayer	...	Reporter
Mitchell Edmonds	...	Reporter

Storyline

Suddenly Laura Mars can see through the eyes of a serial killer as he commits his crimes. She contacts the police and with the aid of a police detective, tries to stop the killer. But first, they have to figure out who it is.

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Plot Keywords:

asking to be murdered | murdering one's lover | murder of a woman | murder of a police officer | serial murder | 

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Genres:

Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Official Sites:

Sony Movie Channel [United States]

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 August 1978 (USA)

Also Known As:

Eyes

Filming Locations:

Columbus Circle, Manhattan, New York City, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$20,000,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation, Major Studio Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

104 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The sequence where Laura Mars (Faye Dunaway) photographs models against a background of cars burning with fire took four days to shoot at Columbus Circle in New York City.

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Goofs

When Laura sees an especially frightening vision the camera cuts to her eyes in close-up. Her pupils are not maximally dilated as they would normally be by extreme emotion, but are pinpoints. This would likely have been a technical difficulty as the bright lights in the C/U would shrink her pupils.

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Quotes

Donald Phelps: [complaining to a detective who offended him] Son of a bitch. I'm sick of all this name calling crap!

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Crazy Credits

Raul Julia is billed simply as R.J. in the opening credits, but by his full name in the cast crawl at the end.

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Connections

Featured in Terror in the Aisles (1984)

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Soundtracks

Burn
Written and Performed by Georg Michalski (as Michalski) & Nicky Oosterveen (as Oosterveen)
Produced by Ken Scott
Courtesy of CBS Records

User Reviews

A terrific thriller, both gripping and spell-binding

A surprisingly forgotten gem of a psychological thriller, Eyes of Laura Mars is a unique and sophisticated shocker that stands out from the normal variety of thrillers.

NYC fashion photographer is having visions where she sees through the eyes of the murderer that's targeting the people around her. But what will she do when she sees said murderer coming after her?

Eyes of Laura Mars was originally based upon a screenplay by master horror director John Carpenter, which isn't surprising considering just how imaginative and effectively frightening that this film comes off. Yet, Eyes' isn't just a terror film, it's also a film of intriguing mystery, sweeping romance, and well-rounded characters. All of this adds up to an enveloping story that's directed with flair and style by Irvin Kershner. The murder sequences pack plenty of tension, yet they aren't gory. The NYC filming locations are fantastic and allow for some truly breath taking cinematography. While the 70's fashions do date the film, they don't subtract from its over all impact. The soundtrack is composed of some great disco numbers, and the theme song by Barbara Streisand is stunningly good.

The cast is perhaps the best highlight of the film though. Star Faye Dunaway is excellent as always as our understandably disturbed heroine. Tommy Lee Jones is equally excellent as the police detective who falls in love with Dunaway. Rene Auberjonois is plucky as Dunaway's agent. Brad Dourif is good as the shifty-eyed driver, as is Raul Julia as Dunaway's wretched ex-husband.

Eyes of Laura Mars is on a level above the average terror film. It's not only thrilling, but strong enough to be emotionally devastating as well. Well worth finding for thriller and horror fans alike.

*** 1/2 out of ****