Alex da Silva Mervyn Johns (Walter) arrives at a secluded house and walks straight into a recurring dream. All the characters are familiar to him but he can't remember why. At the house gathering, Johns predicts what will happen throughout the course of the evening as various guests recount stories of the supernatural to try and disprove psycho-analyst Frederick Valk's (Dr Van Straaten) scientific diagnosis for all things mysterious. We get 5 stories before the ending which ties everything together. Spookily.This is an enjoyable film if you believe in supernatural things. As everyone normal knows, things outside of scientific explanation exist. This film throws a few examples at you. Interestingly, the story that is most spoken about and revered is the 5th story about the ventriloquist Michael Redgrave (Frere) and his dummy Hugo. This is performed well, pretty scary and also realistically psycho-scientific. By that I mean that there is a scientific reasoning that can be applied to the story. I studied psychology for 3 years before I realized that it's all a load of nonsense as they strive pointlessly to make it a scientific study. Like all things, it's probably common sense which is not measurable. The most realistic story is the often neglected 1st story about the car crash victim. Premonitions and dreams that relate to real life events DO happen and I have examples of my own that are too numerous to describe here.In between these two stories, the most memorable segment of the whole film for me is slotted in at number 3 - the haunted mirror. It's a story that portrays an unknowing evil that is relevant for me because I have actually experienced looking in a mirror and seeing something that I know isn't there but blatantly is because I'm looking at it! Again, this isn't the place to elaborate.The film does suffer from poor acting in parts – step forward Sally Ann Howes (Sally) from the Christmas ghost story – story number 2 - and Ralph Michael (Peter) as the husband in the mirror story – story number 3. The film loses a mark for the bad acting on these occasions and another mark for the comedy golfing story – story number 4. However, it has no real damaging effect on the overall experience of the Dead of Night. Check out that room in the mirror stuff ……. and the ventriloquist's dummy.

Leofwine_draca DEAD OF NIGHT is the first horror anthology film and a well-remembered classic courtesy of Ealing Studios. The first story is a short but sweet tale of precognition and a spooky omen. Although it's a simply-told story, the presence of the ever-cheerful Miles Malleson as the chirpy hearse driver certainly enlivens the segment a lot, while the haunted performance from narrator Antony Baird also keeps things interesting. The best thing about this tale, though, is the subtle chill that ensues after Baird realises that the bus is on its way to doom and backs away; both he and the viewer stare on in horror at the inevitable, a climax which isn't ruined by some rather unconvincing model work.The second story is largely disappointing, and any chills are dissipated by the overacting of the youthful cast. The story is of a Christmas party at an old mansion. While playing hide-and-seek, a girl finds herself in a remote attic bedroom where she befriends a frightened young boy. Later on that evening, she discovers that the boy was murdered by his sister decades ago. The figure she was with turns out to be a ghost. Sadly, the female lead in this story is terrible with her clumsy over-emphasising which makes her performance an embarrassing one. The old-fashioned dialogue and plot points also make this one less than inspiring.Thankfully, the third story returns some credibility to the film, with an interesting tale telling of a man haunted by a possessed mirror which witnessed murder and suicide decades before. The man finds himself becoming possessed by the spirit of the murderer and attempts to kill his wife. This is a clever and disturbing tale, with some good, understated acting from the male lead and an imaginative plot. It was reworked in 1973's FROM BEYOND THE GRAVE with David Warner in a more gruesome fashion.The fourth is an incongruous comedy which is at odds with the rest of the subtlety-filled chills and hauntings. It concerns two rival golfing companions who both fall for the same girl. To decide who gets her, the pair embark on a tournament together, with one of the men winning through cheating. His rival promptly walks into a lake and drowns himself, but the winner finds himself haunted by his companion. Although this episode is mildly amusing, the comedy aspects have dated in the worst way and the whole story is treated as one big 'joke'. See AN American WEREWOLF IN London for a better film about a man being haunted by his dead friend.The fifth and final story is a case of saving the best till last. This classic and well-remembered yarn concerns a ventriloquist who becomes possessed by his own dummy. It turns out that he is actually a schizophrenic who personifies his dummy, Hugo, as an evil, living being and who eventually causes him to attempt murder. Thanks to some fantastic acting from a twitchy Michael Redgrave (plus the narrator, a disbelieving doctor) and a really spooky story, this is classic stuff and inspired at least two full-length movies, DEVIL DOLL and MAGIC. There's just something inherently sinister about a wooden dummy's grinning and this intelligent story exploits that to the full.Subtle and spooky, Dead of Night is an effectively chilling ghost film and a minor classic of the genre. While not explicitly frightening today, most of the episodes still pack a punch and the film is well worth watching for the story lines, the performers, and the circular ending.

begob A troubled man accepts an invitation to a meeting at an old farmhouse, but when he gets there finds the guests may make his nightmares come true.Interesting anthology that seems familiar and a bit tired. It's certainly heavy on dialogue and some of the stories do drag on, but the framing of feelings versus analysis works well, at least in the first half and in the climax. But a bit lax in the middle.Other reviewers have set out the stories, so I'll just say the haunted mirror is my favourite, and I expected that would be the H G Wells contribution because it uses all its potential. But no - he wrote the daft golfing story.The actors are OK - nobody outstanding (including Redgrave) - and the protagonist has several ucnonvincing dramatic moments. There are a few unnecessary characters in the farmhouse, and I think it would have been more interesting to have the farmhouse actors also play the supporting characters in the stories. Y'know - Wizard Of Oz style.Editing very patchy, with an obvious insert to deliver gravitas to the golfing story. Plus the protagonist's first view of the house, when the car comes to a halt, is so awkward - at the end of the film the same footage is used much better. Music threatened to overwhelm, but thankfully it eased off.Two most impressive moments were the golfing suicide + the scene where the faces press up against the jail bars. The latter is nice and weird and brings the wraparound to a satisfying point, where you think back on everything you've seen. Not perfect, but you get a sense of the conflict of feelings and analysis ending in horror.Overall, interesting but not gripping.

gavin6942 An architect (Mervyn Johns) senses impending doom as his half-remembered recurring dream turns into reality. The guests at the country house encourage him to stay as they take turns telling supernatural tales.British anthologies really took off in the 1970s with my favorite studio, Amicus. But here we have Ealing, not known for their horror films, making an anthology in the 1940s. That is way ahead of the pack (excluding earlier German films like "Waxworks" and "Eerie Tales").For the most part, this is a really good one. It runs a bit long, and perhaps one of the weaker segments could have been cut. But some of the scenes (such as the haunted mirror) are really good and can almost stand on their own. And then when we get the big reveal, it is terrifying, both for us and our protagonist.While I still prefer the Cushing-Lee anthologies of the 70s, this is well worth checking out for those who are not familiar.