Movie Review: Night Must Fall (1964)
Synopsis: Expectant father, Danny, moves into the house of wealthy widow Mrs. Bramson so he can be closer to his pregnant girlfriend, Dora. Danny is friendly and charming and quickly wins over the house's other occupant, Olivia, Mrs. Bramson's daughter, leading to a love triangle. However, what none of the women know is Danny is an axe murderer who is keeping a head in a hatbox.
Who's in it? The movie stars Albert Finney, Susan Hampshire, Mona Washbourne, Sheila Hancock and Michael Medwin.
Review: I have had Night Must Fall in my library for a couple of weeks and after failing to decide on an alternative this morning, finally watched it. It was an intriguing film but ultimately left me with mixed feelings.
Albert Finney's performance as Danny is the thing that really stands out about this film. He pulls off the role perfectly, believably charming to the point you can understand why all three women in the house are practically swooning over him but when the time calls for it, able to turn on the creepy/insane vibe.
The film also has some fairly intense parts that do keep you on the edge of your seat. The early scene, showing him commit his murder with a hatchet, is as censored as you would expect a movie from the 60s to be but still just graphic enough to sense how evil Danny is. The ending also proves to be equally graphic and suspenseful.
My main problem with this movie is, like way too many in this genre, it's very drawn out. There is a lot of talking, to the point it is almost exhausting, and I think the filmmakers could have easily edited out a half hour of this film, possibly more, without impacting anything plot-related. As a result, while I did enjoy the scenes I mentioned, I also spent the majority of this film feeling a bit bored.
I also wasn't a fan of the background music choices. Some of the music was OK and fit the specific scene. Other music seemed a bit too upbeat, making the movie feel more like a romantic comedy than a thriller. That, combined with the long gaps of inaction/talking, did make me question if I made a mistake picking it out.
Final Opinion: Finney's performance makes this movie worth watching but this is also a film that could easily be fast-forwarded through without you missing a whole lot between the most memorable scenes and that does take something away from the film as a result.
My Grade: C+
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Here are some reviews of other movies from 1964:
Movie Review: The Horror of it All (1964)
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