The Night Walker

Irene Trent is unhappily married to Howard, a blind, pathologically possessive millionaire inventor. Howard's palatial mansion is filled with synchronized cuckoo clocks, and he tapes conversations to catch any sign of an illicit liaison. Irene lives in constant dread as Howard's jealousy keeps her isolated and under scrutiny.

Howard forbids Irene from leaving the house and offers almost no guests except his attorney, Barry Morland. He spends most of his time in his upstairs laboratory, refusing to reveal the nature of his projects. Irene longs for freedom and dreams of an extramarital affair, kept at bay by his control.

An explosion devastates the laboratory and kills Howard. Irene is set to inherit the house and his fortune after probate. The charred lab is padlocked to prevent entry, sealing Irene's fate and heightening the mystery around his work.

Following Howard's death, Irene experiences a nightmare in which a disfigured Howard stalks her through the house. The fear lingers as she wonders who might be watching and manipulating her from beyond the grave.

Convinced she must leave the death site, Irene moves into the back-room apartment of the beauty shop she owns. Joyce, a newly hired beautician, becomes her confidant and ally. The isolation persists, but Irene gains a trusted friend at last.

Irene continues dreaming of a fantasy lover. In one dream, she is married to him in front of wax figure witnesses. The chapel is the same one where she and Howard were married, blurring dream and reality in a haunting sequence.

When Irene awakens, she and Barry visit the now-abandoned chapel. A groundskeeper allows them entry. Irene finds the wedding ring from her dream lying on the floor, blurring the line between dream and possible reality.

Back at the beauty shop, Joyce relays an anonymous message from George Fuller: 'Pleasant dreams.' Joyce is stabbed to death by a man resembling Howard. Barry arrives and claims that Howard attacked him, intensifying Irene's fear.

Irene and Barry drive to the Trent estate. Barry enters the house while Irene tries to call the police, but the telephone line has been cut. They hear gunshots, and Irene rushes further into the wrecked mansion interior.

In the ruined laboratory, Barry reveals that he has been impersonating Howard with a prosthetic mask. He confesses to causing the explosion after naming himself primary beneficiary in Howard's will. The motive unfolds as a calculated inheritance scheme.

George Fuller, the private detective Howard hired, had been blackmailing Barry for half the estate and is revealed to be part of the plot. He explains the deception and intends to kill Irene to keep her silent. The scheme widens into a dangerous web of double-crosses.

Barry attempts to kill Irene, but George shoots him in vengeance for Joyce. George then lunges at Irene, but Barry and George collide in a struggle and fall through a gaping hole in the laboratory floor. Irene watches the deaths with a mix of horror and relief.

Looking down at the two corpses, Irene breaks into insane laughter. The experience leaves her mentally unsteady, yet she has survived the night and escaped the plot that sought to control her life.