On Wednesday, the American psychological thriller from 1967 titled 'Wait Until Dark,' directed by Terence Young, was shown at the Arasbaran Culture Center in Tehran. Following the screening, a discussion took place with film critic Amir Kaderi.
The film's plot revolves around Susy Hendrix, a blind woman who lives with her husband Sam in an apartment in Greenwich Village. Their peaceful life is disrupted when Sam unknowingly becomes involved in a dangerous heroin smuggling scheme.
Problems begin with the arrival of Liz, an attractive drug courier who transports heroin hidden inside a stuffed doll. At the airport, she notices a menacing man watching her and deceives another passenger, Sam Hendrix's photographer, convincing him to keep the doll for safekeeping. Later, Liz is killed by the mysterious Harry Rohat Jr., who then hires two petty criminals, Mike Talman and Carlino, to help him find the doll.
When the men discover Liz's body hidden in the Hendrixes' apartment, Rohat forces them to cooperate, threatening to pin the murder on them. Susy soon becomes the target of a complex ploy. Because she is blind, the criminals believe she is easily manipulated. Mike pretends to be Sam's old friend, and Carlino poses as a police detective. Rohat uses various disguises and fabricated stories to convince Susy that Sam might be connected to the murder of a woman named Lejiana. The criminals encourage her to search for the doll in the apartment, suggesting she can prove Sam's innocence.
Susy's young neighbor, Gloria, accidentally returns the doll after borrowing it. Gloria also helps Susy investigate suspicious activity around the apartment. Analyzing the clues, Susy realizes that the men lied to her and are deliberately manipulating her. She hides the doll and tries to contact the police, but finds the phone line is disconnected.
Realizing that her blindness might work to her advantage, Susy destroys almost all light sources in the apartment, leaving only the safe light from Sam's dark room. Mike returns and demands the doll, but Rohat appears and kills him, anticipating the criminals' betrayal. Rohat then locks Susy in the apartment, pours gasoline in the rooms, and threatens to burn down the building.
Susy resists, using her knowledge of the apartment and heightened senses. She temporarily blinds Rohat with photographic chemicals and plunges the room into complete darkness. Although Rohat eventually forces her to hand over the doll, Susy secretly attacks him with a kitchen knife. Their final confrontation ends with her managing to hide in the darkness and evade his capture.
Just as Rohat is about to find her, Sam arrives with the police. They break down the apartment door and find Susy alive and Rohat dead. What started as a carefully planned criminal scheme ultimately turns into a terrifying battle where Susy's blindness becomes the key to her survival.