The Night Of The Hunter (1955) ****1/2
The Night Of The Hunter (1955) is a dreamy, haunting, and menacing Bluebeardian fairy tale noir with some of the most indelible and expressionistic black & white imagery ever put to celluloid (courtesy of Stanley Cortez). On this viewing, some of the flaws were more apparent and some of the tonal shifts were off-putting (the ending in particular doesn’t thrill me) but I can’t deny that it’s a film that sticks with you. Charles Laughton’s sole directorial effort is a singular experience with timeless themes and career-best performances by Robert Mitchum and Lillian Gish (together perfectly capturing the duality of humankind).
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