Play Misty for Me

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Play Misty for Me

R

1971

1h 42m

Mystery & Thriller

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

85%

Tomatometer

40 Reviews

72%

Popcornmeter

10,000+ Ratings

Popular radio show host Dave Garver (Clint Eastwood) becomes restless in his relationship with his girlfriend (Donna Mills). Impulsively, he goes out and sleeps with a woman (Jessica Walter) he meets at a nightclub. After the fact, he finds out she was not an anonymous hookup, but an obsessive fan who has called in repeatedly to request he play the song "Misty." Garver soon discovers extricating himself from the woman will be no easy feat as she becomes increasingly psychotic.

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Critics Consensus

A coolly calculating psychological thriller that manages to scare the audience even if it is just using textbook thrills.

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Jay Cocks

TIME Magazine

Eastwood displays a vigorous talent for sequences of violence and tension. He has obviously seen Psycho and Repulsion more than once, but those are excellent texts and he has learned his lessons passing well.

Aug 30, 2009

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Variety Staff

Variety

For that 80% of the film which constitutes the story, the structure and dialog create a mood of nervous terror which the other 20% nearly blows away.

Apr 8, 2008

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Dave Kehr

Chicago Reader

Clint Eastwood wisely chose a strong, simple thriller for his first film as a director, and the project is remarkable in its self-effacing dedication to getting the craft right.

Apr 8, 2008

Full Review

Keith Garlington

Keith & the Movies

While it’s hardly (Eastwood's) best directed film, you get good tastes of the filmmaker he would become all throughout “Misty”.

Rated: 3.5/5

Mar 9, 2023

Full Review

Sean Burns

Crooked Marquee

Look, if you’re an up-and-coming actor directing a film for the first and possibly last time, why wouldn’t you devote 4.2% of the total running time to Donna Mills having sex with you under a waterfall?

Jan 28, 2023

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Grant Watson

Fiction Machine

The sexual politics may be terribly dated, and its portrayal of mental illness typically inaccurate, but there is a solid, old-fashioned potboiler at work here.

Rated: 6/10

Dec 28, 2021

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Audience Member

Since it was Beastwood's first directed movie. I think it was a disaster. Also, it was very boring and a hard watch. The biggest villain in the movie was Beastwood's hairstyle. Get a haircut, unc...

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

06/15/25

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Phillip M

Credible directorial debut from Clint. A simple linear story. Should have got someone else to play Dave though, Clint is a little too laid back in his delivery IMHO. The film belongs to Jessica Walters and Clint clearly let her take centre stage. There are some gaping holes in the story and the pace can switch down at times, but it's a worthy forerunner to Fatal Attraction and Misery. There's tension and memorable 70s shirts! I watched this many years ago and I enjoyed watching it again.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

06/09/25

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Glen H

Very dated early stalker entry with lots of downtime and meandering that just freezes the plot at a standstill. It's Eastwood in the early days figuring out how to weave a narrative, which he mastered in later years.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

05/19/25

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Jen O

Great movie and cast. Kept me on the edge of my seat! Highly recommend.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/24/25

Full Review

Jonathan O

One of the scariest psychological stalker thriller of the 70's and this is before Fatal Attraction and Play Misty For Me is the og of Fatal Attraction and Clint Eastwood first director really outstanding on his directing debut and he really respects to the cast and crew and beautifully cinematography by Bruce Surtees.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

03/23/25

Full Review

Blu B

An Eastwood Classic. For a first time directing it's a good effort overall. It's suprisingly prettyl cozy and easygoing pacing wise but good. It does keep your interest. The editing isn't bad but Eastwoods storytelling here is a bit jumpy. It can feel like stuff just happens bouncing around between the love triangle and the devlopment of relationships. Everything else though is pretty solid. The framing, lighting, and camerawork is good. The villian is good too. It's cut from the same cloth as Fatal Attraction & Misery but not as sharp as those films are. The film does always keep your interest and despite struggling to maintain suspense I'd say it gives way not to boredom but more just being very easygoing and vice versa. This isn't for everyone I'd say. If your a fan of stalker flicks, Eastwood as a director, or any actors in this than this is worth a watch.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

01/25/25

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Clint Eastwood

Director

Clint Eastwood

Dave

Jessica Walter

Evelyn

Donna Mills

Tobie

John Larch

Sgt. McCallum

Irene Hervey

Madge

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Home Invasion

1:37

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Dead Detective

1:01

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Crazy Lunch

1:33

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Threatening Tobie

2:08

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - God, You're Dumb

2:20

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Fighting Evelyn

1:46

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Suicide Attempt

3:30

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - Breakup Freakout

2:28

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - The Night Stalker

1:37

Play Misty for Me: Official Clip - I'm Misty

2:13

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Synopsis

Popular radio show host Dave Garver (Clint Eastwood) becomes restless in his relationship with his girlfriend (Donna Mills). Impulsively, he goes out and sleeps with a woman (Jessica Walter) he meets at a nightclub. After the fact, he finds out she was not an anonymous hookup, but an obsessive fan who has called in repeatedly to request he play the song "Misty." Garver soon discovers extricating himself from the woman will be no easy feat as she becomes increasingly psychotic.

Director: Clint Eastwood
Producer: Robert Daley
Screenwriter: Jo Heims, Dean Riesner
Production Co: Malpaso Company, Universal Pictures
Rating: R
Genre: Mystery & Thriller
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 11, 2015
Runtime: 1h 42m

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