When my Sister and I were kids, this movie came on and almost immediately, she laid down on the floor and her eyes were glued to the screen (I had already seen it). It says a lot about this movie's quality that it would grab her attention like that. She tends to lean more towards Adam Sandler movies (although to her credit, Grown Ups must be pretty bad if she thought it was "boring and stupid"). Robert Mitchum is amazing in this. The last thing I saw him in (I think it was even his last part before he died) was Dead Man, with Johnny Depp. Even then, he was crushing it.

I'm fascinated that Teague has only just recently seen Psycho (my personal favorite Hitchcock film) and I hope that means a commentary is eminent.

I wish people would stop perpetuating that bullshit about Black Widow in The Avengers. I feel like Eddie would/should know better.

I'm not saying Black Widow is a completely flawed, bad character.  What I am saying is that her kicking ass in Iron Man 2 (which I totally dug for what it was) tends to be the singular characteristic of strength for a woman in a modern film.  Now, Black Widow in Cap 2: The Cappening, is FAR more interesting, and her strength comes through in ways other than face-punchery.  And again, there's nothing wrong with women facepunching.  But, and I should have been clearer about my reference being limited to Iron Man 2, if facepunching is all you give me to indicate that this female character is strong, then that's not really enough.

I'm responding to Pavlich's last sentence in his post above.

Ah, yes. Iron Man 2, okay. If we are just talking about that, then I'd say you're right on the money. I haven't seen Cap 2 yet, but I hear mostly great things, for the movie itself and Black Widow, specifically.

Heh... The Cappening.

I think that given the underlying elements of Night of the Hunter, it makes sense that Superhero movies would come up in discussion, mostly because they're so prevalent right now. They're an almost weekly (it seems) example of gender politics in some way or another. They tend to evoke this kind of discussion and this movie further ties into that. In a way, Mitchum's character is a kind of Supervillain, using his status as a White Male to diminish and destroy any potential power to be found in Women and Children. That's part of what makes Mitchum's performance so chilling: Back then, this attitude was not only accepted as "right", it was encouraged. Men and Women were defined by it. Although the Women's Rights Movement happened decades ago, much of its results are just now being widely felt and implemented. For example, Strong Female Characters and Superhero Movies.

So, yeah, sure. I suppose we can talk about the acting and cinematography in Night of the Hunter, but what then? That's all on-the-screen, surface stuff that while amazing, doesn't really tackle what the film is about and why it exists in the first place. Moody lighting is all well and good but let's have a rich discussion about the actual film. Isn't that much more fruitful?

What Trey said

Hey Eddie, good call on this. I watched it, and appreciated it, but watching it again with your commentary really helped unpack it. There was a lot more going on than I thought. Really interesting film (that I otherwise wouldn't have ended up seeing), thanks!

Last edited by Herc (2014-06-13 04:58:30)

Disclaimer: if you dislike the tone of a post I make, re-read it in a North/East London accent until it sounds sufficiently playful

It was James Agee guys, not Steve.

He was actually a great writer/film critic. One other interesting note is that he was friends with a young Kubrick. Kubrick forced him to watch Fear and Desire, 3 days later Agee died.

Okay, now Natasha Khan is just fucking with me.  After reading an interview with her I realized that THIS:

Was inspired by THIS:

Please, no one ever show her A Serbian Film

Glad you liked i!

Here's something I realized recently: Reverend Powell is a clear inspiration for Kent Mansley in The Iron Giant.

Both are adult men in positions of power that are usually trustworthy.

Both stalk and menace children, because the children have information that they need. These children are, in both cases, being raised by a single mother.

Both are intimidating most of the time, but they both also fall into slapstick antics when thwarted.

Both have a scene where they stay up all night hoping that their opponent will fall asleep before they do.

I'm glad we did this movie. Thanks for the recommendation, Eddie.

*checks watch*

What, too soon?