Mirage

The power fails in a New York tower block, and coming down the stairs in the dark David Stillwell notices that a woman descending with him knows who he is. Outside, a man threatens him with a gun and realises Stillwell does not remember the past two years. He has to work out for himself who he is, what he did and why he is being hunted. Edward Dmytryk shot it in black and white and uses the amnesia as the method of construction, with the flashbacks misleading the audience as much as the character. Gregory Peck leads and Walter Matthau plays a novice private detective. Behind it sit the arms race and the responsibility of scientists. Who it is for: viewers who like sixties noir and thrillers built on memory. Who it is not for: anyone expecting a quick resolution.