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From Amazon.co.uk
In the entire history of American movies, The Night of the Hunter stands out as the rarest and most exotic of specimens. It is, to say the least, a masterpiece--and not just because it was the only movie directed by flamboyant actor Charles Laughton or the only produced solo screenplay by the legendary critic James Agee (who also co-wrote The African Queen). The truth is, nobody has ever made anything approaching its phantasmagoric, overheated style in which German expressionism, religious hysteria, fairy-tale fantasy (of the Grimm-est variety), and stalker movie are brought together in a furious boil. Like a nightmarish premonition of stalker movies to come, Night of the Hunter tells the suspenseful tale of a demented preacher (Robert Mitchum, in a performance that prefigures his memorable villain in Cape Fear), who torments a boy and his little sister--even marries their mixed-up mother (Shelley Winters)--because he's certain the kids know where their late bank-robber father hid a stash of stolen money. So dramatic, primal, and unforgettable are its images--the preacher's shadow looming over the children in their bedroom, the magical boat ride down a river whose banks teem with fantastic wildlife, those tattoos of LOVE and HATE on the unholy man's knuckles, the golden locks of a drowned woman waving in the current along with the indigenous plant life in her watery grave--that they're still haunting audiences (and filmmakers) today. --Jim Emerson, Amazon.com
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:VHS Tape
Charles Laughton only directed one film and this was it. On the strength of this surely he should of made more. This film is a gem, full of atmoshere, superb acting ( not least by the children in the film), suspenseful and a parable of good and evil. Visually it is stunning especially the children's moonlit flight downsteam in a small boat with the haunting melody of the little girl's song in the background.
this is a film to watch time and again and never tire of.
this is a film to watch time and again and never tire of.
15 of 17 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
A fine example of the "one man's meat is another man's poison" cliche, this film is a fantastic masterpiece to those, like me, who succumb to its wonderful magic, and an incomprehensibly overrated disappointment to those who don't.
It is almost impossible to categorise: is it gothic horror, thriller or dark (and occasionally sentimental) fairytale? Perhaps a combination of all three, and it is indeed in moments of transition that some of the haunting nature of this movie is revealed. As Mitchum's terrifying pursuit of the childrens segues into their river escape, the tone switches from nailbiting terror to gorgeous "magic reality" in the wake of his roar of disappointment, ready for the good fairy (Lilian Gish) to turn up downriver. Just to name my own favourite moment; there are plenty of others (the wife at the bottom of the river being the most oft-quoted). And what stunning, overwrought yet just right, performances there are from Mitchum (possibly his best ever), Winters and others.
Anyone coming to this film expecting a simple, unified, realistic narrative will indeed be disappointed, but those ready to give themselves to a world of symbol and shadow, light and darkness (what fantastic cinematography!), and pure, fairytale good and evil need seek no further. This is not an "old" film: it is timeless, and eternally beautiful. Don't be afraid; jump in and submerge yourself. But don't drown...
It is almost impossible to categorise: is it gothic horror, thriller or dark (and occasionally sentimental) fairytale? Perhaps a combination of all three, and it is indeed in moments of transition that some of the haunting nature of this movie is revealed. As Mitchum's terrifying pursuit of the childrens segues into their river escape, the tone switches from nailbiting terror to gorgeous "magic reality" in the wake of his roar of disappointment, ready for the good fairy (Lilian Gish) to turn up downriver. Just to name my own favourite moment; there are plenty of others (the wife at the bottom of the river being the most oft-quoted). And what stunning, overwrought yet just right, performances there are from Mitchum (possibly his best ever), Winters and others.
Anyone coming to this film expecting a simple, unified, realistic narrative will indeed be disappointed, but those ready to give themselves to a world of symbol and shadow, light and darkness (what fantastic cinematography!), and pure, fairytale good and evil need seek no further. This is not an "old" film: it is timeless, and eternally beautiful. Don't be afraid; jump in and submerge yourself. But don't drown...
45 of 52 people found the following review helpful
By Mr Ed
Format:DVD
I just got a DVD player and this is the 1st film I had to buy. You have not seen it until you see it clear and bright as the lighting and photography of this true masterpiece are also in the starring roles here. There is no other movie like it (which explains why it bombed so unjustly at release time) and I for one believe it to be at least one of the top 10 of all times. The people who do not like this simply do not get this as it escapes all labelling and takes you from opposites genres to emotions.This is best viewed with a child eye view as the story is told through(largely) a child point of view. it is one of the greatest film of all times and if you give it a bit of your time and undivided attention it will enthrall you, make you smile, scare the bejesus out of you and leave you with so many haunting images that you will carry with you for ever,(Shelley Winters in the lake, Mitchum jumping in front of Gish and her gun, LOVE and HATE knuckles...You will be humming LEANING,LEANING also for a long time) If you never see another film, just see this one as even though it is a classic it is also approachable by anyone who has ever been thrilled by cinema, connoisseur or just movie goer...
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4.3 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars
Region 1 DVD
Won't play on region 2 players. Should be more explicit about that. Never had a problem before. Got the files converted but lost the DVD structure, menus etc. Read more
Published 11 days ago by Mr. Peter W. Coleman
5.0 out of 5 stars
Night of the hunter
The DVD came with in very satisfied with purchase there's nothing else to say about my purchase at this time night of the hunter
Published 3 months ago by jane hankinson
5.0 out of 5 stars
A TRUE CLASSIC
A must for old film buffs, this classic can only be termed a 'masterpiece'; with scenes lush in shadowed ambiance, rooted in early German Impressionist film. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Intimatewitch13
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Film
I remember seeing this film as a child and the impression it left especially growing up as a christian. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Sugar Plum
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Film Like No Other
This is a difficult film to describe. I understand it was Charles Laughton's only film as a director. As such, one can only imagine what else he might have produced. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Richard Allen
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chilling
This is Mitchum at his best. A classic chiller, no wonder it is in the top 50 films of all time.
Published 4 months ago by Grip
5.0 out of 5 stars
A pearl before swine?
My title refers to the fact that this film bombed at the time it was made and released. Now, as attested by many enthusiastic reviews here, and the fact that the Library of... Read more
Published 6 months ago by Sebastian Palmer
5.0 out of 5 stars
It Really Does Bring in the Sheaves
Whilst not saying much about 'life' (so it's not Citizen Kane), it is cinematically fascinating and totally original and like nothing else. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Mario
5.0 out of 5 stars
Laughton's Macabre Fairytale
I will come clean and admit that The Night Of The Hunter is one of my all-time favourite films - top twenty certainly - and, for me, ranks alongside the likes of The Maltese Falcon... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Keith M
5.0 out of 5 stars
One-off masterpiece
Quite simply one of the ten greatest films ever made. When you think that Charles Laughton was an actor and that this was his only film to see the light of day, it makes you wonder... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Mr. M. T. Sampson
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