The Night Walker Movie Review
After the death of her wealthy husband, Irene Trent (Barbara Stanwyck) seeks the help of her husband's attorney Barry Morland (Robert Taylor), as she is now having nightmares of her husband seeking revenge on her as she continues to have visions of her "dream lover". The question is this: is she, in fact, dreaming, or is all this actually happening. This horror-mystery comes right out of the gate swinging with an absolutely phenomenal opening sequence that is a combination of fascinating, frightening, and trippy.
Cool stuff
Director William Castle (House on Haunted Hill, 13 Ghosts) does a really good job setting the atmosphere of this film, and it truly keeps one guessing what's real and what isn't. The acting is good all the way around--Stanwyck is a convincing victim, Morland shines as the attorney, and Judith Meredith is wickedly outstanding (and gorgeous) as Joyce, the hair stylist friend of Irene.
Joyce giving Irene a massage
The music is really good as well (especially in the first half hour), the blind husband looks horrifying (both before and after death), and the marriage scene is so strange it's wonderful. The major drawback is the pace. Toward the middle of the film it hits a wall and absolutely crawls for quite some time--it's as if Castle and writer Robert Bloch could not find a way to advance the movie, which is strange because it actually is a really good story. This is particularly bothersome considering how good the opening is, so seeing it end up a dog chasing its tail is beyond frustrating. However, once the movie does get back on the tracks it delivers a really effective ending, complete with twists and turns. I honestly wasn't expecting much out of this one, but The Night Walker goes beyond the typical Castle gimmicks (which we all love) and is a good movie as well.
On A Scale Of One To Ten: 7
The Night Walker Trailer
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