As far asCharles Laughtons legacy goes, hes well-established as one of the greatest actors of his generation.
Thats what he did, and thats what he did well.
How does that work?
Image by Zanda Rice
Is this going to befoolish?
Well, theres only one way to find out!
It is a strange movie.
Image via United Artists
‘The Night of the Hunter’ is a movie.
Across a little over 90 minutes,The Night of the Hunterjerks uncontrollably between intense darkness and treacly sentimentality.
Speaking of first-degree murder, theres quite a lot of death inThe Night of the Hunter.
‘The Night of the Hunter’ runs for 92 minutes.
Honestly, hes relentless in a waythat sometimes suggests near-supernatural abilities.
Don’t he never sleep?
Death doesnt need to be seen, or be graphic, to have an impact here.
This is whereThe Night of the Huntergets dark.
Powell is monstrous and ceaselessly pursues two young children who are wrapped up in something they dont deserve.
The way he threatens them, especially once their mothers gone,is still intense to watch.
‘The Night of the Hunter’ features opening credits.
Well, traditional might be a better word.
Such behavior does make him harder to label as potentially supernatural or otherworldly a foe.
Look, its probably intentional.
Again, love and hate.
You do get the sense that its mostly intentional, but theres this nagging feeling that it wasnt.
Was Laughton in control?
If yes, then what he was doing here conceptually is masterful and innovative.
But what if he wasnt actually that good of a director?
Modern-day viewers lean toward good/intentional, while some critics back in the 1950s were more in Camp Messy.
