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Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns) is invited to stay at Pilgrim’s Farm in the country, to assist with architectural reconstruction. When he arrives, he’s shocked to discover that he recognizes everyone gathered in the living room, despite having never been there and having never met any of them. He has a recurring dream in which he approaches the house, walks in and sits down with the group, exactly as he just did. In his dream, a short time later a penniless brunette barges in quite unexpectedly. He discusses this supernatural drama with the group; some believe him, a few are delighted at the occult theory, and others are skeptical. Thus begins a series of flashbacks, recalling strange, horrific stories told by each member of the party. Produced by legendary Ealing Studios and directed by four accomplished filmmakers, Dead of Night is one of the first to assemble several smaller stories together in a single-movie anthology, paving the way for countless other films to utilize this collecting method. The first story, told by Hugh Grainger (Antony Baird), involves a disastrous racecar crash that leaves him with odd visions of a hearse driver reappearing frequently to call out to him. Psychiatrist Dr. Van Straaten (Frederick Valk) is the disbeliever, intent on dispelling the notion of delusions, premonition and otherworldly visions. Perhaps it’s all an elaborate joke. But Craig continues to remember unique details about the way the day unfolds, made particularly eerie when dark-haired Mrs. Grainger (Judy Kelly) walks in unannounced and tells her husband to pay the cab fare, as she’s spent all her money shopping. |
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The next story, told by Sally (Sally Ann Howes), involves a Christmas costume party and a game of hide-and-seek with Jimmy Watson, who tells her about the ghastly murder of a little boy by his older sister. As she searches for a better hiding spot, she wanders into an attic where she discovers a crying boy – who she later discovers is the same one who was killed. No one believes her, and she’s sent to bed as if ailing. When she’s done telling her scary story, Craig remembers more of his dream, which includes savagely beating Sally sometime after she’s forced to depart. Sure enough, her mother whisks her away for her uncle’s birthday party. The following story is about a haunted mirror that seems to reflect a different location. An optical illusion, perhaps? The mirror has a superstitious background that must also be told, creating the rare instance in which a story is told within a story within a fictional film. This is one of the best stories in Dead of Night, amazingly using the naturally spine-tingling subject of mirrors with wrong reflections, without bloodshed or graphic images – just genuine chills. Eliot Foley (Roland Culver) recites the next tale, involving a cheating golfer plagued by the ghost of his rival who committed suicide after losing a game. This is easily the weakest of the stories – it’s not out of place when the purpose for it is exposed, but it’s a mostly comical and light-hearted haunting. Dr. Van Straaten himself tells the final story, about his visit to an asylum to see a ventriloquist with a very unusual dummy. This story is also told in multiple layers, with Straaten narrating a side story within the main one. During Maxwell Frere’s (Michael Redgrave) voice-throwing routine, Hugo the Dummy starts to act up, seemingly having a mind of its own, and propositioning touring competing ventriloquist Sylvester Kee (Hartley Power) to take over as his partner. It becomes fearfully apparent that Maxwell isn’t in control of Hugo. And it’s a standout performance by Redgrave. Even after each character reveals their personal horror stories, further terrors await to reveal the twist that brings everyone together at the farm. Dead of Night is one of the first films to gather seemingly unrelated short stories and cut them together with a linking narrative. It’s brilliantly creepy with frightening orchestral music to boot; each story gradually gets weirder, more bloodcurdling and more creative. The ideas are genuinely spooky, the dialogue smart, the cinematography and lighting effectively unnerving and the acting solid. Although it would be unlikely for a remake to be as perfect as this clever thriller, it could be a great source of concepts for a contemporary horror revisionist. - Mike Massie |
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