Review of The Night of the Hunter (1955) by Cj W — 06 Jul 2013

The Night of the Hunter is the quintessential good vs. evil parable in film, it is relentlessly entertaining and visually stunning. The film tells the tale of two children whose father killed and robbed some people for 10,000 dollars, then left it with them after he was sentenced to death.

While he was in prison, he met "preacher" Powell, who overhead him talking in his sleep about the money, and this sets the stage for the rest of the film, as Powell starts his ruthless quest to find that money.

Charles Laughton directed this masterpiece, his only film as a director, and it's a shame he didn't direct more; he does an absolutely phenomenal job of portraying these kids in the light of goodness and innocence, while Powell dwells in the darkness of evil clothed in the light.

There are shades of visual poetry, and truly astounding images that stand out among the best I've ever seen. It is honestly, a revolutionary film in American cinema, because new depths in darkness were reached, and visual poetry that America had never really seen.

And all that combined with Robert Mitchum's terrifying portrayal of Harry Powell make for one of the best films of the fifties, and probably, of all time.