Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

Better Late Then Never

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

Everything about Mirage, from the story to the cast to the camera angles, feels like an Alfred Hitchcock movie. Edward Dmytryk directed this intense thriller, but part of me thinks that Hitchcock did it in secret and hoped no one would remember his presence on the set. After you've seen the movie, you'll get that joke.In the film, Gregory Peck is caught in a building's blackout, and rather than wait for the power to return and use the elevator, he makes his way down the stairs. He bumps into Diane Baker, who seems to recognize him, even though he has no recollection of who she is. That's only the start of Greg's very difficult day! The bartender at his favorite hangout claims not to have seen him in ages, but the doorman at his office that he doesn't know seems to know him very well. A stranger approaches him and threatens to kill him if he doesn't deliver his suitcase to The Major—but Greg has no idea what's going on! This is a very tense mystery and psychological thriller, with an intriguing script and very memorable lines. If you like Hitchcock movies, add this one to your list; you won't be disappointed. Gregory Peck does a great job in his fright and desperation, and George Kennedy makes a fantastic, tough, and pretty hunky bad-guy. Diane Baker, seen in Hitchcock's Marnie, and a pre-The Odd Couple Walter Matthau join the cast in this film full of twists and turns that will keep you on the very edge of your seat.

The problem often met with such films is quite simple.As the viewer, we're all ready to indulge into the plot we're given and absolutely ready to give into all that's been worked on and built for us to discover.But even without any natural inclination for skepticism or a critical bias, having a narrative like Gregory Peck is the lead character and suffers from amnesia and means to unearth his past at the very start seems to weigh heavy for a whole nearly two hour experience.The story works fine, and there is globally a strongly produced bit of cinema with good acting and dialog and what not that are surely enjoyable, but there doesn't seem to be enough content to challenge the viewer in a way he needs to be. There's an effect of obviousness and predictability to where the film is going as soon as it introduces its premises.6/10.

The Unidyne building in Manhattan sustains a blackout. As folks slowly evacuate the premises, David Stillwell (Gregory Peck) and an elusive woman (Shela = Diane Baker) briefly converse. Their exchange appears awkward as we are in the dark about the situation (excuse the pun). Although Shela knows David he does not know her. Outside a man lies dead on the street; apparently he jumped out of a 27-story window. He was Charles Calvin (Walter Abel), who worked for world peace. Shela departs as David heads for a drink; the bartender tells him that he has not seen him lately. David, apparently a cost accountant at Unidyne, appears confused with a mental blackout. As David enters his apartment building, Lester (Jack Weston) pulls a pistol on him. In the apartment he tells Stillwell to pack some bags as he needs to catch an airplane to Barbados. Stillwell though is soon able to turn the tables against his opponent, who is knocked out. David drags him outside near the elevator. Then when David attempts to prepare his supper, he notes that his refrigerator is as empty as his briefcase. Josephson (Kevin McCarthy), a workplace associate, calls to inquire about his upcoming cruise, of which David knows nothing. When Stillwell goes to the local police station, he cannot remember key facts about himself, like date of birth and telephone number. Frustrated, he leaves. He then calls a consulting psychiatrist by the name of Broden (Robert Harris); on his way he runs into Shela at the Central Park Zoo. Their conversation is still stilted. As they separate, Shela warns him, "Be careful, David." A caged panther growls. Ah, more symbolism: David is in trouble.David tells the abrasive psychiatrist, Doc Broden, that he may be insane because of memory lapse. He feels he has had unconscious amnesia for two years. "Impossible," says Broden, who chides him and kicks him out as unconscious amnesia lasts only for a day or two. David, spotting the AAA Detective Agency, hires Ted Caselle (Walther Matthau). David is his first case. Back in the apartment David's refrigerator is now full although the coat closet is empty. Caselle surmises that David is being manipulated by someone, and reveals that he spotted a man following them on the city streets. Then there is a confrontation in the building basement with maintenance / hit-man Willard (George Kennedy), who shoots at them. But Willard is eventually cold-cocked. Caselle ties the beginning of David's dilemma with Calvin's suicide, as the two events occurred almost simultaneously. When David sees Shela for the third time, she says that they had previously dated. Shela also states that the "major" keeps him alive because he needs information. But she still does not answer all of his questions directly. Halfway into the feature we are still in the dark.Shela leads David to doorman Turtle's apartment building where Lester, the first gunman, awaits. Lester leaves and David finds the doorman dead in the bathtub. Shela returns as police sirens are heard. David is not happy that she set him up. Although she answers to the major, she retorts that the latter calls the shots. Shela also reminds him that she never left him alone. Both escape before further problems ensue. Caselle awaits at David's place. He tells David that he investigated his real employer: It is Garrison Laboratories of Brewster, California. Furthermore, the company is part of the Charles Calvin Peace Foundation, a non-profit organization. Dedicated to world peace, the head of Garrison Labs is Sylvester Josephson, formerly of Unidyne, a nuclear manufacturer. Meanwhile Shela, who obviously knows the apartment well, prepares coffee. After David leaves, the action picks up. Lester and Willard pull weapons on David but he escapes as psychotic Willard inadvertently plugs Lester. However, David is soon chagrined when he finds his confidante Caselle strangled in his office. Still pursued by Willard, David experiences flashback images. In a park tunnel David hears Josephson calling out. But Willard shoots at and almost hits David, who again flees. He bullies his way back to psychiatrist Broden, who reluctantly agrees to consult with him. David tells Broden about one particular flashback, the one with him under a tree in conversation with Calvin at Garrison Labs in California. He begins to remember that he is not a cost accountant, but a physio-chemist who works there. He only returned to NYC two days earlier, but remains uncertain why he traveled in the first place. Broden declares David really does not want to remember although he is really just bruised, not sick. David visits with Calvin's widow, who believes that he killed her husband. While David protests this allegation he discovers the name of the "major," a Unidyne executive named Crawford Gilcuddy (Leif Erickson). David immediately heads for Gilcuddy's quarters, where he confronts cohorts Willard and Josephson, and later even Shela; Willard assaults him before the major interferes, an action that clears David's amnesia. Previously David had discovered the formula for neutralizing radiation, to make a "clean" nuclear bomb. But David, a pacifist, has realized that a "clean" bomb may encourage its use by world powers. Therefore he will not share his secret even though Gilcuddy wants it, as did Calvin (but only for peaceful uses). We learn Calvin had accidentally fallen through the window after briefly struggling with David, who had burned the document containing his formula. The death so traumatized David that he became temporarily amnesiac. Meanwhile Josephson has Willard's gun. Gilcuddy orders Josephson to shield him to safeguard his future. David tells the indecisive Josephson to discount that statement, as Gilcuddy has already ordered the killing of two men ("Dammit ... Commit!"). Tortuously Josephson turns the weapon on Gilcuddy and the police are called. David and Shela are reunited. Although not everything is explained, the NYC setting is always a plus. And the marvelous Walter Matthau steals the picture. Despite a rather weak ending, this is a recommended suspense thriller.

Mirage is directed by Edward Dmytryk and adapted by Peter Stone from a book written by Howard Fast. It stars Gregory Peck, Diane Baker, Walter Matthau, Kevin McCarthy, Leif Erickson and George Kennedy. Music is scored by Quincy Jones and cinematography by Joseph MacDonald.David Stillwell (Peck) finds he is suffering from Unconscious Amnesia and that he has blacked out the events of the previous two years. That's rare, but Stillwell must find out what happened because he might have a lover, has shifty characters after him and he may even have committed murder?20 years after appearing in the tricksy and turny psychological thriller Spellbound for Alfred Hitchcock, Gregory Peck jumps into the same type of shoes with a modicum of success. It's a little too contrived for its own good, with the odd character serving to the plot as god knows what? Seriously, what is Baker doing here? While the weak ending doesn't pay off on the suspense and mystery that had previously been well orchestrated by Dmytryk. On the plus side is the shadowy black and white photography by MacDonald, giving the film an edge, and the use of real New York locations lend the film some serio worth.Matthau slips in and steals the film from an efficient Peck, and Kennedy and McCarthy score well as muscle and shifty respectively. It's not essential as a Peck or Dmytryk piece, or as a politico/mystery thriller, but enough interest within to keep it above average and Matthau more than makes it worth while. 6/10