Whispers in the Dark

Dr. Ann Hecker runs a successful psychiatry practice in Manhattan, treating a steady stream of patients. Her office exudes calm professionalism as she listens to confessions and guides them through their issues. The balance of her professional and personal life is tested as troubling cases begin to surface.

During a therapy session, Eve Abergray describes a recent sadomasochistic encounter with her lover in graphic detail. Ann listens intently, notes the emotional weight of the confession, and records the impact it has on Eve. The disturbing tale foreshadows how Eve's stories will shape the doctor's dreams.

The next day, Ann's patient Johnny mentions that Eve's beauty provoked violent sadistic fantasies in him. Ann begins to suffer troubling dreams inspired by Eve's stories, blurring the line between patient material and personal fear. The dreams deepen the sense that Eve's case is testing the doctor as much as her patients.

Seeking guidance for the recurring dreams, Ann contacts her former medical school instructors, Leo Green and his wife Sarah, both psychologists. They agree to discuss her experiences and offer professional perspectives on the case. The exchange widens the circle of psychological minds involved and foreshadows the complicating dynamics to come.

Around this time, Ann starts dating Doug McDowell, a former Air Force pilot who works in her building. The relationship adds a personal layer to the case as the boundaries between professional and private life blur. Ann's life becomes increasingly entwined with the unfolding mystery surrounding Eve and Johnny.

In a later session, Eve insists on undressing and confesses that she has fantasized about masturbating in front of Ann. She also recounts a disturbing encounter in which her lover placed a noose around her neck and threatened to hang her, an act she nonetheless found profoundly erotic. The exchange unsettles Ann, highlighting how Eve's fantasies bleed into the therapeutic space.

Later, Eve identifies her sadomasochistic lover as Francis Douglas McDowell. Ann responds by suggesting that Eve seek another psychiatrist, effectively ending their patient-therapist relationship for the time being. The revelation deepens the tension between Eve and Ann and foreshadows further disruption.

In the lobby, Doug accosts Ann and Eve confronts them, accusing Ann of pursuing Doug to fulfill Eve's fantasies and of stealing her files, including tapes of their sessions. The confrontation marks a sharp break in trust and boundaries. The next day, Ann goes to visit Eve to reason with her, only to find Eve's corpse hanging in her apartment.

Ann visits Eve and discovers her corpse, and Morgenstern reports that Eve died from a skull fracture rather than the hanging, suggesting foul play. He also broaches the possibility that Johnny murdered Eve, given his violent history and public links to Eve's gallery. The investigation grows murkier as suspects and motives multiply.

During their ongoing discussions, Morgenstern presents Johnny's violent criminal history and notes that Johnny's artwork had been featured at Eve's gallery, linking him to the case in the public eye. The revelation adds a possible motive and a troubling layer to the rapidly expanding web of connections. Ann grapples with the possibility that a patient could be involved in Dreary Eve's death.

Johnny breaks into Ann's apartment, binds and gags her, and accuses her of helping Morgenstern frame him. He smashes a window and climbs onto a ledge, threatening suicide. Morgenstern arrives and, in the ensuing struggle, Johnny accidentally falls to his death.

Doug visits Ann after learning of Johnny's death and invites her to visit his family in Iowa. In conversation with Doug's mother, Ann learns that his ex-wife Jenny hanged herself years earlier. Morgenstern warns that Doug might be Eve's killer, a theory Ann rebukes as she continues to investigate.

Back in New York, Ann goes to meet Doug at an air hangar to take a flight, only to find him with Morgenstern's dead body. Doug claims he found Morgenstern there, deepening Ann's fear and suspicion. She flees in terror, and Doug chases after her, only to be struck by a passing car.

At a beach house on Cape Cod, Leo openly admits to murdering Eve and Morgenstern and to having retrieved Ann's tapes. During a drunken confrontation, Leo bludgeons Sarah and attempts to kill Ann, but she defends herself and kills Leo with a pole hook. The brutal confrontation resolves a core thread of the mystery while shattering others.

Some time later, Ann and Doug visit the air hangar together, signaling a tentative reunion. Ann begins aviation lessons herself, embracing a dangerous but hopeful path forward after the harrowing events. The film closes on a note of resolve and a new direction for Ann.