BY DOUG OSWALD

A seemingly harmless prank by teenage girls takes a horrific turn in producer/director William Castle’s 1965 production “I Saw What You Did”, recently released on Blu-ray by Shout! Factory as part of their Scream! Factory line of horror titles. Libby and Kit (Andi Garrett and Sara Lane) are baby sitting Libby’s little sister Tess when they come up with a game taking turns choosing random phone numbers out of the phone book and making prank calls stating, “I saw what you did, and I know who you are!”

Among their first recipients is Judith Marak (Joyce Meadows). Libby asks seductively to speak with Steve, Judith’s husband. When Judith informs Steve (John Ireland) of the call, Steve reacts by savagely stabbing her to death. Later, he answers the phone to hear, “I saw what you did, and I know who you are!” Steve engages the girls and asks to meet Libby. Libby and Kit have no idea Steve has just murdered his wife and after a few more calls agree to meet Steve still thinking they’re engaged in a harmless game.

Amy (Joan Crawford) is Steve’s neighbor and shows up shortly after Steve’s wife is murdered. Apparently they’re having an affair and Steve had plans to leave his wife and marry the wealthy widow. Amy figures out what has happened due to Steve’s strange behavior surrounding the calls from Libby pretending to be “Suzette.” Amy attempts to blackmail Steve into marrying her and that leads to further dramatic deveopments. With Crawford relegated to a distinctly supporting role, the movie relies heavily on the performances of the three young actors. Fortunately, they come through and the sincerity of their performances gives the film a slight edge- of -your- seat feeling, but one never gets the notion that the girls are in any real danger. We move from prank call to concerned parents trying to call and check on the children as we watch Steve plan his next move. The movie features a strong supporting cast of veteran actors in addition to Crawford and Ireland including Leif Erickson as Dave Mannering (Libby & Tess’ father), Patricia Breslin as Ellie Mannering (their mom), John Archer as John Austin (Kit’s father) and John Crawford as a state trooper who comes to their inevitable rescue.

Interestingly, the three young actors at the center of the movie had very short careers in the entertainment industry. Andi Garret (Libby) appeared in four episodes of “The Wild Wild West” from 1966-68 and an episode of “Baa Baa Black Sheep” in 1976 before retiring from acting. Sarah Lane (Kit) was a regular on the TV series, “The Virginian” from 1966-1970 appearing in 105 episodes as Elizabeth Grainger followed by appearances in the movies “Schoolgirls in Chains” in 1973, “The Trial of Billy Jack in 1975 and “Billy Jack Goes to Washington” in 1977 before retiring from acting. Sharyl Locke (little sister Tess) appeared in “One Man’s Way” and “Father Goose” in 1964 prior to “I Saw What You Did” in 1965. This was followed by an appearance on “Burke’s Law” in 1965 and “Bonanza” in 1966 after which she, too, retired from acting.

The music by Van Alexander is entertaining, but a bit too cheerful for a thriller. The score feels out of place and would better suite a 1960s sitcom and perhaps it’s used as a way to underscore the innocence of the young girl’s prank. It’s still distracting and more befitting a Haley Mills teen comedy like “The Parent Trap” and “The Trouble with Angels” or one of the many “Beach Movies” of the era.

Released by Universal in the summer of 1965, the movie’s poster declares, “William Castle Warns You: ‘This is a motion picture about uxoricide!’” Uxoricide is the killing of one’s wife, but I think the word sounded more exotic than murder. This enjoyable black & white shocker looks terrific in its widescreen presentation with great sound and running a brief 82 minutes. Extras on the Shout! Factory release include the cool trailer featuring producer, director and showman William Castle informing the audience that the theater will provide seat belts so the viewer will not be shocked out of their seat. There’s also a photo gallery and the regular release trailer. Highly recommended for fans of William Castle, Joan Crawford and 1960s shock thrillers.

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