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The Night of the Hunter
Paperback
Series: BFI Film Classics
Film StudiesFilm Guides & Reference
Publisher Price: $17.95
ISBN13: 9781839023750
Publisher: British Film Institute
Published: Dec 10 2026
Pages: 104
Weight: 1.00
Height: 1.00 Width: 5.32 Depth: 7.48
Language: English
The Night of the Hunter (1955) was Charles Laughton's only film as director. Part expressionist horror movie, part luminous fairy tale, it contains some of the most haunting images in cinema. Willa (Shelley Winters) her throat cut and hair streaming out like seaweed, sitting upright in a submerged Model-T Ford. Her children, framed by looming animals, in a downriver flight from Preacher (Robert Mitchum). Preacher on horseback, a silhouetted threat on the horizon. Rachel Cooper (Lilian Gish) keeping watch in the darkness. The Night of the Hunter is revered today, but it failed on its first release, and Laughton never recovered from the disappointment.
In his afterword to this new edition, Simon Callow looks back on the film and its continuing influence through references, homages and remakes.
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