Nicolas Roeg, in his well-crafted psychological thriller Don’t Look Now, is sure to pack as much meaning as possible into every frame of the film.  Consequently, we can explore the thematic elements of optics and grief on a deeper level for a richer understanding as well as even make more accurate plot predictions through careful attention to every detail presented in this film.  The second scene at the restaurant presents an excellent example of Roeg’s ability to take advantage of editing and cinematography, particularly the eyeline match, allowed through the film media to underline his themes and present his motifs with subtlety.  The scene occurs some time after the death of the young Christine Baxter who drowned while playing on the grounds of the Baxter’s old English home.  The parents, John and Laura, have now moved to Venice for a contracting job between John and a bishop to restore an old church.  Through the presentation of the first scene, a careful audience will already be aware of the developing theme of optics, or the varying ways humans perceive things, at this time.  The second scene at the restaurant is very important because it allows the audience to further understand the theme of optics, introduces new themes and characters, and draws a subtle but important connection between one of those new characters and John Baxter.
	Immediately following the tragic events witnessed in the opening sequence of Don’t Look Now, Nicolas Roeg abruptly shifts the setting from an English country home to Venice, Italy.  As John Baxter enters the restaurant and sits down to have a seemingly normal conversation with his wife, we begin to understand a new theme presented in the movie which is how the characters deal with grief.  Presenting this normal conversation only a few short minutes after the drowning scene can only imply a repressed feeling of guilt.  A few seconds later John glances over his wife’s shoulder and notices two women sitting at another table.  An unspoken connection is thus introduced between John and a blind elderly woman named Heather, and it will be reiterated throughout this scene multiple times.  An extremely important event occurs next in which John begins complaining that he feels cold while Laura continues sitting comfortably.  Although both John and the audience are currently unaware of his gift of second sight, John is currently experiencing the presence of his daughter Christine, as confirmed later when the psychic woman states she can see Christine sitting at the table with him.  Here, Roeg presents the first piece of evidence of John’s supernatural gift in the film.
	To continue, the two women bumping into the table where John and Laura are sitting is not unintentional as the director wishes to further the connection he made to the two ladies.  John stares at the woman in the black coat, and the camera focuses on a piece of jewelry she is wearing in the form of an eyeline match.  As Laura decides to go help the women in the bathroom, the director employs parallel editing to display shots of John interwoven amongst the scenes of Laura and the other women which occur simultaneously in the fabula.  The events portrayed in the bathroom are shown through the reflection of the bathroom mirror, conveying the distortion inherent in normal perceptions.  This distortion is made clear through the fact that throughout this initial event in the bathroom, all the characters’ faces are shown through the bathroom mirror except for Heather’s.  Only when the other woman points out that her sister is, in fact, blind does Laura look up at the mirror and notices her face in all three frames pronouncing “I see.”  This event further enhances the difference between John’s second sight and Laura’s plain sight.
	Continuing the action, the camera now cuts to John who stares at the water outside.  The screen dissolves into a flashback portraying John’s memories of him and his wife leaving their home in England shortly after their daughter’s death.  The camera then dollys in on a shot of the water before finally dissolving into a shot of Heather’s eyes.  Through this series of events the audience learns several things.  In addition to furthering the connection of the water motif to death, a huge connection is also made between John and Heather.  She has just seen John’s past and possibly even shared his thoughts as well as learned the tragic fate of his daughter, Christine.  She explains she has seen Christine sitting with Laura and John at the table happy and laughing.  As she utters the words “I’ve seen her”, the camera once again dollys in to a close-up of her face through the reflection of the bathroom mirror.  This again signifies the relationship between mirrors and vision.  A cut to Heather’s vision reveals Christina happy and laughing just as she described her as she runs towards the camera.  The shot then dissolves to a direct eyeline match of John who is staring at a slide of a church in preparation for his restoration work.  This is also the same slide he was studying at the time of Christine’s death.  Such a direct connection to Christine between the characters of John and Heather raises yet another flag at the second sight powers John unknowingly possesses.  Later, as Laura returns to the table from the bathroom, she faints from Heather’s description of her vision of Christine, knocking over the table.  A close-up shot portrays glassware and spilt liquid among the food remains, two motifs which signify both death and distortion of sight.
	Ultimately,