Customer Reviews

Night Walker [VHS]

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I absolutely love this movie. Okay, I know some could pick it apart saying what is wrong with it, but that doesn't sway me. I love it. I can't even say how many times I have watched it...ha. The one thing that upsets me about it though is that it isn't out on DVD yet, I wait anxiously for that day. Am I alone in my obsession for this movie? If not please join me at group I have created especially for this movie. A place where fellow devotees can congregate and talk and wait and see who we can put the pressure on to get this movie on DVD. [...]
Fellow devotees unite!

"Together again!" blurted the ads for this William Castle thriller. The ads meant, of course,former husband and wife Robert Taylor and Barbara Stanwyck, who had a rather acrimonious divorce in the early 1950s. "Everyone probably thought we were going to beat each other up", said "Missy" Stanwyck, when asked about how their screen reunion went. Well, they didn't beat each other up, but gave good performances in this Robert "Psycho" Bloch-scripted film, one of William Castle's best. "The Night Walker" is the tale of attractive Irene Trent (Stanwyck), who is married to blind, jealous and abusive scientist Howard Trent, played by Hayden Rourke (He was "Captain Bellows" on TV's "I Dream of Jeannie"!). Marriage to Howard, in Irene's words, "Is like a nightmare!" In her frustration, she dreams of a young, handsome and attentive lover, and talks in her sleep. Howard accuses her of having an affair with their attorney, Barry Morland (Taylor). They quarrel,(Stanwyck's tirade is a masterpiece of vitriol!), she runs out of their gloomy old mansion, and Howard is incinerated in a mysterious explosion in his laboratory. Irene, feeling uncomfortable living in the house, moves into the small apartment behind the beauty parlor she owns. Her dreams of a dream lover continue, (Are they dreams? Are they real?) and then they become terrifying nightmares. She sees Howard, his face hideously burned, and her "dream lover" (Lloyd Bochner) marries her in a positively frightening ceremony in an abandoned chapel. Irene begins to doubt her own sanity...Surprisingly, "The Night Walker" was a box-office dud. It is a very entertaining film, with a great cast, which includes familiar old faces such as Rochelle Hudson, Marjorie Bennett, Jess Barker, and Tetsu Komai (he was one of the manimals in "Island of Lost Souls"). "Missy" Stanwyck looks great, though she possessed one of the most unmelodious screams ever heard on screen (it sounds like a foghorn!), but she gives, as always, a believable performance. She was great. Robert Taylor is good, though he was never one of my favorites, and his once-handsome face had not aged well, and his bad facelift did not help matters. The musical score is rather noteworthy. It was composed by Vic Mizzy, who has, to his credit, "The Addams Family", "Green Acres", "The Pruitts of Southhampton", and a quartet of Don Knotts comedies, including "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken". It is a very entertaining, catchy score, praised by Bernard Herrmann! The picture quality on this tape is excellent, and the original teaser trailer is loads of fun ("Do you dream of SEX?") So, for an enjoyable 85 minutes, curl up with a bowl of popcorn and "The Night Walker"! Pleasant dreams....

"The Night Walker", following on the heels of her 1964 collaboration with Elvis Presley in "Roustabout" marked rather sadly the last cinema release in Barbara Stanwyck's long and very acclaimed film career. After this film she moved full time into television and scored herself a triumph (and an Emmy Award into the bargain),as the firm but fair lead in the classic western series "The Big Valley". It was a shame she didn't continue in leading film roles because here Barbara has never been better in her later years than as the widow tortured by recurring dreams so alarmingly vivid that that seem frighteningly real.

Produced by the infamous William Castle who's speciality was having skeletons fly across cinemas on wires during performances, it would seem at first glance that the material here which has a slightly incredible premise was not very promising. But in reality it is actually one of the better of the "shock cinema" offerings of the 1960's which found veteran actresses of the 1930's and 40's appearing as deranged or menaced mature women in low budget offerings that still drew audiences on their weight of their names. "The Night Walker", has an involved plot that finds Barbara Stanwyck playing Irene Trent who finds herself a widow after her insanely jealous husband (Hayden Rorke in a very non traditional role)is killed in an explosion in his lab. She finds herself tormented by frightening dreams where her husband is actually still alive and where she is also pursued by a mysterious handsome stranger who in a bizzare wedding ceremony in a mysterious chapel marries her and then disappears. Is Irene only dreaming or is she being driven out of her mind? These are the big questions left unanswered until the thrilling conclusion of this film which I wont reveal for the benefit of those who haven't seen this film yet. For once William Castle has an intelligent screenplay by the talented Robert Bloch to utilise and he is greatly aided through the convoluted story and the very surprising twist at the end by the seasoned performing of former husband and wife team Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor. Much was made of their reteaming in this film at the time of the release of this film. They had worked together on two films in the 1930's "This Is My Affair", and "His Brother's Wife" and both bring their years of experience to their parts and make a fascinating pair on screen aside from the poignantcy of seeing them together again after all these years. While Robert Taylor's appearance in the film is a surprise (he was already suffering from the cancer that eventually killed him in 1969), he is wonderful playing Barry Moreland, Irene's husband's financial advisor who supposedly is helping Irene understand just who is tormenting her before revealing a nasty side to his character. Hayden Rorke still best remembered for his work in the hit series "I Dream of Jeannie", has the small but memorable role of Howard Trent the dead husband of Irene, or is he really dead? His insanely jealous character is certainly a dramatic departure for him and his scenes early in the film with Barbara Stanwyck really lay the ground for the tension created later in the story.

William Castle really plays up the visual images here and this is what gives "The Night Walker", it's eerie dramatic power. In Irene's dreams we see Howard supposedly rising from the dead with his face all burnt from the explosion we are led to "believe" that he survived. In another instance we witness the totally macabre wedding ceremony populated by frighteningly distorted dummy figures that seem to glare right through you and take on a life of their own. It's these scenes that make us share this slightly off centre panic that Barbara Stanwyck's character experiences . The gloomy mansion, the clocks all going off at once on the grand staircase and the play of shadows in the apartment at the boutique where Irene has retreated to supposedly find some peace also encourage that feeling of there being no rest from this unknown presence haunting Irene.

"The Night Walker", is a very engrossing pyschological thriller. Barbara Stanwyck insisted at the time of the picture's release that "The Night Walker" was not a horror movie in the Baby Jane model and while there are some familiar elements it is a story which stands on its own merits. It certainly is very watchable and indeed keeps you guessing right up to the surprise ending which willl really leave you gasping. Being a huge Barbara Stanwyck fan I was prepared to enjoy this film anyway but it displays a mature Stanwyck in full throttle delivering a grand performance as she did throughout her career. Her chemistry with Robert Taylor is great and both give this thought provoking story their all. If you like mystery thrillers with plenty of red herrings thrown in along the way to supposedly "put you off the scent" then you are guaranteed to enjoy William Castle's "The Night Walker" starring former husband and wife team Barbara Stanwyck and Robert Taylor.

I first saw this gem on TV in the mid 1970s on a Saturday afternoon. It frightened me as a child and fascinates me as an adult. Another in a string of William Castle shockers, this film has a great performance from Barbara Stanwyck along with plenty of cheesy thrills and campy dialogue as only Castle can deliver ("When I'm awake with you my life is like a nightmare!"). Memorable music adds to the spell. The recent horror hit "House of Wax" pays homage to "The Night Walker" in a key scene. Why isn't this on DVD?

I have been a fan of this little oddity ever since I saw it on it's release in 1964---I was 9 yrs old and thought it was the weirdest thing I'd ever seen. Well, I'm a big boy now and I still love this movie. It's one of Castle's oddest films. He enlisted Barbara Stanwyck for this tale of dreams VS. reality VS. sanity and spooked it up nicely with bizarre flourishes like the chapel "wedding" scene and scenes where Stanwyck thinks she's still dreaming and can't wake up. Stanwyck gives it her touch of class all the way and screams her head off as shock after shock are heaped upon her. It's rather low budget and nicely done in b&w with a memorable film score that sticks in my head for days when I hear it. Lloyd Bochner is in sinister form as "The Dream", one-time Stanwyck husband Robert Taylor
is fine as her attorney and Hayden Rorke (from TV's "I Dream of Jeannie") is her blind husband who may or not be dead. He stalks her in her nightmares. Bizarre and very well done. "The Night Walker" really deserves to be on DVD as part of Castle's
horror collection.

I saw this movie when I was a kid and it scared the s*** out of me! This is a great horror classic. It's a shame it's not on DVD in widescreen format. The first ten minutes or so are a bit hokey but once the story kicks in the suspense builds. It's in black and white but it is great cause they utilize shadows and fog to create suspense; and the music totally fits the genre. I can hear the music in my head as I write this; da da da da dum. My nephew once bragged how he could watch any horror movie. I put Night Walker in for him to watch. By the end of the movie he was watching it with his baseball hat tilted over his head and his hands over his face. He couldnt sleep that night, he was so scared. We wound up spending the night playing Nitendo. Yeah, it's definitely a B-movie but one of the greatest B-movies I've ever seen. It's a tradition in our home to watch it at least once a year. I've seen the other Castle films but to me this one is the true classic.

Stanwyck screams her head off in this, her last theatrical release! I don't know how she kept from rupturing her vocal chords! She's the greatest actress that ever was!! Robert Taylor (her ex-husband) looks simply terrible in this film. This was four years before his death from lung cancer. Barbara looks sensational but Taylor looks and acts really bad. The movie is a neat little thriller with a dandy opening!!

The Night Walker is the best film William Castle ever made, in my opinion. It has intrigue, mystery, and probably the best "B" movie score ever composed. Vic Mizzy is a genius at writing scores and he proves it here. Barbara Stanwyck's screams are a bit much, so get your remote's volume button ready. But, also get the volume turned up for the scarier movie music in the film. It is great. If I could find the soundtrack I would purchase it. I love it, and the movie!

With Halloween just around the corner...I know, it's over a month away! I just can't wait to start watching lots of good horror and sci-fi films, so I'm jumping the gun. I was hoping to see this released on DVD this year, but I haven't heard anything yet. This is a classic old ghost story / mystery with lots of creepy atmosphere. Black and white, lots of creepy noises, ghost and fog. From Dr Shock to all my horror buddies, look for this one on cable (hopefully), its a good starter for the season! Please release this on DVD!

Stanwyck, Stanwyck, Stanwyck...she runs amok in this film, most likely channeling the rage she felt towards her agent. She kicks with her pumps and screams with her gin-cracked voice! The bizarre score enhances the creepiness of the film, an atmoshpere which otherwise mostly comes from the bad screenwriting--that kind of creepy! Robert Taylor, Stanwyck's ex-husband acts with her in this one as well as Lloyd Bochner as "The Dream". If you even mildly appreciate William Castle and creepy, campy classics, get it for a huge belly laugh, you won't be disappointed...Stanwyck at her worst-best!!