Review for Night of the Hunter, The (UK) (DVD)

Synopsis
A fanatical self-appointed preacher (Robert Mitchum) marries a naive widow (Shelley Winters) in order to get close to her children, so he can locate $10,000, left behind by the father of the children.

Review
The Night of the Hunter (1955) is a film I had wanted to watch some time ago, but never got around to doing so, until yesterday afternoon. I later found out that the film, like the novel of the same name (written by Davis Grubb), was based on the true story of Harry Powers, a serial killer who ruthlessly murdered his victims solely for their money. He was eventually convicted and sentenced to hang in West Virginia, 1932.

The film's nightmarish and merciless "Reverend", Harry Powell, clearly resembles the convicted serial killer, Harry Powers. Near the film's beginning, Harry is seen driving an open-top car, whilst peering towards the skies and uttering a chilling prayer. Moments later, as he drives past a cemetery, he exposes himself as a cold murderer, who receives heavenly inspiration to not only marry and then slay women (usually widows), but also to steal their money.

This sets the agenda for the rest of the film, but what makes the film interesting, is its visual aesthetic. In comparison to many of the commercial Hollywood films released throughout the 40s and 50s, The Night of the Hunter veers towards an arguably more experimental, dream-like and perhaps avant-garde-ist style. Maybe this is partly the reason the film was, sadly, a failure both commercially and critically at the time of its release. In spite of these initial shortcomings, there is no denying the power of the storytelling techniques deployed by British actor/director Charles Laughton (sadly the only film he directed - he vowed never to direct another film after The Night of the Hunter's failings upon release). 

Characters frequently make references to Biblical tales of greed, lust, sin, the innocence of youth and perhaps most importantly, false prophets. The film itself often feels like a parable, which has even more resonance when, when near the film's end, the matriarchal figure of Rachel Cooper, proclaims to the young children under her care, "you know, when you're little, you have more endurance than God is ever going to grant you again. Children are humanity's strongest. They abide."


The contrast between the virtuous and caring Rachel, and the relentless and psychotic preacher, Harry, suggests the dichotomies of good/bad, light/darkness, pure/impure, moral/immoral and so forth. It is these clashes of polar opposites which sets up the film's finale, as the motherly Rachel, equipped with a shotgun, guards the young and vulnerable children whilst waiting for the "devil" Harry Powell to make his move.

Video
Released by MGM in 2001, the transfer on the DVD is adequate. The levels of black quite often vary and the image often lacks sharpness (perhaps not surprising given the DVD pressing date of 2001 and also, of course, the fact that more than 50 years have passed since the production of the film), but in an uncanny way, this maybe adds to the dream-like/nightmarish qualities of the film. Sadly MGM thought it fit to present this film in the full-frame aspect ratio of 1.33 : 1, rather than in its original ratio of 1.66 : 1.

Sound
MGM's Region 2 release features Dolby 2.0 dual mono audio mixes in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish, Whilst there is not much to boast about the audio mix, the sound, much like the video quality, is adequate, if often lacking in clarity.

Extras
As with many of the MGM single disc DVD's released in the early noughties (and I could sit here and reel off an endless list), there are no bonus features apart from a theatrical trailer and a two page (yes, you read right.TWO page) "collectible" production note booklet. I am not quite sure what MGM were thinking when they commissioned this DVD back in 2001, but this film deserved a plethora of extras such as outtakes/deleted scenes (apparently, there was much footage which did not end up in the final cut), cast/crew bios, audio commentary etc. In 2010, the Criterion film company, finally gave The Night of the Hunter the treatment it deserved in both the DVD and Blu-ray format, with respective releases boasting a restored image, superior audio mixes and extras which surely would brought an overdue smile to the face of any follower of the film.

Overall
The Night of the Hunter is a truly powerful and evocative film, which tells a chilling tale about a sinister and malevolent figure, who, whilst in the pursuit of money, will even attempt to murder young children. The deranged and psychotic "Reverend" Harry Powers is more frightening than most evil entities seen in the modern horror film, and a lot is owed to Charles Laughton's direction, which creates a dream-like, or rather, nightmarish world, where the two children on the run must seek protection and a safe haven from the "devil".

Many contemporary film directors such as Spike Lee, Jim Jarmusch, David Lynch et al, have been influenced by the film's particular visual style and it is somewhat unfortunate, on this basis, that MGM could not commission  a better DVD release of The Night of the Hunter in 2001. That said, this disc can be picked up for £3/4 online or perhaps also at local entertainment stores, and could be well be worth the investment if one has already not seen this film.

For aficionados of the film, I would strongly suggest banking some money, before hunting down a Criterion DVD/Blu-ray version of this timeless classic, as the list of extras, as well as the remastered picture (and the fact that it is presented in its original aspect ratio) and sound quality are enough to warrant the extra bit of cash spent.