EYES WITHOUT A FACE — SHOCKTOBER!

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Master filmmaker Georges Franju had been making films for 25 years before he terrified audiences with "Eyes Without A Face" in 1960.

This groundbreaking horror movie significantly influenced Alfred Hitchcock, whose "Psycho" and "The Birds" owes "Eyes Without A Face" several obvious debts.

Agonizingly grotesque sequences are executed with admirably simple effects. 

Georges Franju uses a jarring soundscape to ratchet up suspense in a disquieting narrative about Dr. Génessier (Pierrre Brasseur), a mad doctor attempting a risky face-transplant for his horribly disfigured daughter, Christiane. The irritating sound of dogs barking sends chills down your spine.

Dr. Génessier keeps Christiane locked away in his mansion's attack, where she wears a plastic mask to hide her disfigurement from a car accident that her father caused.

Edith Scob gives elegant physical resonance to Christiane's pained existence with gentle dance-like movements that give her an ethereal quality not far removed from that of a zombie.

Alida Valli brings beauty and gravitas to the film as Dr. Génessier's partner-in-crime, medical assistant, lover, and former patient, whose pretty face he delivered as his greatest medical achievement.

Noir elements from a criminal investigation, play out against Dr. Génessier's serial killer habit of feeding off local college girls whose faces he steals.

"Eyes Without A Face" is a rare horror film that allows the audience's imagination to run wild, while also giving us an unrelenting sense of suspense. When things get gory, we understand their underlying meaning of abject terror on multiple emotional levels.

Prepare to be shocked.

God may not believe he's a doctor, but there are doctors who believe the reverse.

Not Rated. 90 mins.