Customer Reviews

The Nightcomers

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

 

 

Touted as the prequel to "The Turn of the Screw", Brando plays Quint, a sexually charged gardener overseeing the grounds (and soon the players) at a remote English Manor. Two young orphans with only their nurse and housekeeper to tend to them become intrigued and obsessed by the strange Irish man who spends more time spinning tales than cutting the lawn. The children, who are completely closed off from the rest of the world, become willing voyeurs in Quint's creepy tender-violent dance with the nurse and soon find themselves aping the actions of the adults. Their loyalty and fixation with Quint drive them to unspeakable acts when it appears the "parents" may end their own relationship. Brando's Irish brogue is always a treat to hear (as in "The Missouri Breaks") and one always wonders of the horrific tales he spins in character have something to do with his own painful childhood. This film is engrossing and savage and walks the miniscule line between pleasure and pain. It's definitely not a flick for the kiddies.

Chilling, tense, compelling take on The Turn of the Screw. Brando plays a ruffian gardener/caretaker who has some of his very own ideas about life, love, and nature. He has totally under his spell the two newly-orphaned children living in the house, as well as their buxom nanny. The story is fascinating from the first scene and never lets up. Danger is ever-present, yet when it strikes you are shocked and surprised. Some of the sex scenes between Brando and a lovely young Stepahnie Beacham push the envelope, to the point where you would almost call this softcore, because of the exposed personal parts and the S&M nature of some of these scenes. Some also might be disturbed by the two adolescent children playing at some of these scenarios, they having spied on the couple at night. But none of that is gratuituous, it is all part of the story, and if that doesn't bother you you will love the film.

The famous prequel to "The Innocents" is finally available on DVD, but sadly it could never come close to the subtle perfection of that classic. Still, it's still an interesting film. Starring Marlon Brando and Stephanie Beacham, it imagines a possible scenario that may have been played out between Quint and Miss Jessell (who are already dead at the start of the action in the original novel, "The Turn Of The Screw"), and the two children who interact with them. A new governess is left with the psychological mess they left behind in the minds of these children, and that is the role played by Deborah Kerr in the 1960 classic, but it forms just the tail end of the film we have here.
First of all, Marlon Brando does a good job as the gardener/handyman. He portrays just the right amount of latent brutality and sex appeal to convince you that a prim governess could fall under his spell. I'm no Brando expert, and it may be that he is just playing himself, but it works...my only quibble is his rather thickly laid-on Irish accent which sounds a bit too forced to totally convince. Stephanie Beacham also fares well as the governess, although her character is sketched in far less detail. The two children are played rather woodenly, but to be fair they (and the rest of the cast) are hampered by a pretty hideous script which thinks it is approximating the style of talking in England in Victorian times, with lots of "pray tell me" and "you scoundrel" type of dialogue, and nobody ever uses contractions, which sounds extremely affected. Another main problem with the movie is that it is... well, just a bit low on events. Winner goes a bit overboard on the symbolism with shots of dolls without eyes, small animals dead or dying, or childhood toys found covered in maggots (gasp!). It's almost like he's copied his ideas from "The Innocents", (recalling a great scene when a cockroach crawls out of the mouth of a cherub statue), but he doesn't really need to do this as there is no mystery about how and why the children are acting in the way that they do, whereas in "The Innocents" we are trying to ascertain what is true and what is imagined. Here, it's all quite obvious.

Obviously filmed on location in Britain in the early 1970's (I know it's a period setting, but that golden age of British horror movies - the time of the famous Hammer Horror style - is unmistakeable!), the film is certainly beautiful to look at. The action is set in lush forests and gardens, as well as the impressively period looking country mansion. Highlights are of course based around much corset ripping and a certain amount of sado-masochistic goings on between the two adults, all of which is spied upon by the two charges, ultimately corrupting them with a twisted view of the relationship between love and death, as much as an interest in kinky thrills. Interestingly, the two children seem an awful lot older in this film than they actually turned out to be in "The Innocents", but I suppose having them as pre-teens would have made too much of the material un-filmable.

There's no supernatural element at all (as the cast are all still alive in this movie!), so it's just a dark romp through sordid and sexy goings on at a country estate, culminating in two deaths, and two very messed-up children. And of course, because of "The Innocents", everybody knows that there can only be one ending, so there's no surprises there. It tries to be shocking (children copying the perversions of adults-gasp!) but it really plays that aspect pretty safe. But again, it does look lovely - there's no substitute for filming in location on a gorgeous British country estate. And the sight of Stephanie Beacham when the dead body of Miss Jessell is discovered is one of the more bizarre images in period horror cinema - you won't forget that shot!

Sadly, due to the coarseness in handling the overall idea, it is mostly a rather uninvolving story, but director Michael Winner goes into it all with gusto, so it's an interesting one none the less.

"Based on the characters" created by a Henry James novella "The Turn of the Screw," "The Nightcomers" is something of a curiosity. Probably without the name of Marlon Brando, the film would have been totally forgotten by now. My VHS tape's cover says "Don't miss this sexy shocker." Looking back from now, the 1971 Michael Winner film may still look sexy, but is not shocking any more.

Being a "prequel" to the Henry James story (or Jack Clayton's "The Innocents"), the story of "The Nightcomers" revolves around an enigmatic gardener Peter Quint (Marlon Brando) and his love/hate relations with the governess Miss Jessel (Stephanie Beacham). Brando's character also serves as a kind of father-figure to the two children Flora and Miles, whose strange behaviors often annoy the uptight housekeeper Mrs. Grose.

The film offers an interesting interpretation of what happened to Peter Quint and Miss Jessel, whose fates are only vaguely suggested in the original book. Brando's Quint is charismatic and sexy enough to convince us of his liaison with the repressed Miss Jessel, with several scenes that remind us of "Basic Instinct."

Unfortunately the two kids are much less successful, especially Flora. In short, they show no character development and remain uninteresting throughout the story. Once we see through the true nature of these innocent-looking children, which happens pretty early on, we have nothing to discover in their characters.

Instead of psychological nuances or emotional tensions, director Michael Winner (known for his revenge thriller "Death Wish") relies on shock tactics like blowing up a poor toad. I still don't understand why he was hired for this film, which obviously requires more subtle storytelling. In spite of Brando's mesmerizing performances (including his making funny faces), and the good photography that captures the creepy atmosphere of Bly House, "The Nightcomers" is a disappointing entry in Marlon Brando's filmography.

This adapting of the Henry James novel is certainly not what I read in school. Although Marlon Brando's "dialog" is unintelligible at times, he puts in a strong performance as Peter Quint. A combination of lovable rogue, a sadistic son of a so and so, but who is good with Miles and Flora, he turns in an interesting performance. Stephanie Beacham, as the seemingly prim and proper Miss Jessel, but who allows Quint's cruelty (particularly in the more "intimate" [shall we say] part of their complex relationship) is also good. [She may surprise some with her display of flesh in a few points in the movie, but it isn't necessarily essential to the story, but she's not bad.] Anyway, there are some disturbing points, e.g., when the children imitate the behavior (as seen by Miles) between the brother and sister [as well it should. It is a disturbing, dark, movie, but well done.

This film is a typical horror film in the gothic Victorian tradition. Brando plays a near-sociopathic handyman while Stephanie Beacham provides his love interest, with an effective sexual chemistry. The movie holds the interest of the viewer pretty well. Stephanie Beacham wrote an autobiography (I forget the title), in which she describes her scenes with Brando in somewhat humorous terms.

Certainly this film could have been made much more engaging in the hands of a better director.

As it is, however, the only thing worth watching about this movie is Marlon Brando's performance. The two children chosen by Winner to play Flora and Myles are absolutely terrible - they have next to no variation in expression and are just PAINFUL to watch. It's a shame, because the story depended on the two to carry it.

I'm a big fan of Stephanie Beacham so I purchased this video. It's a very strange movie, but I did like it--but not the ending.

Have you ever watched a theatrical version of Henry James' "Turn of the Screw" and wondered how the groundskeeper, Peter Quint, and the governess, Ms. Jessel, became ghosts? "The Nightcomers" is an interesting, creative story of how they are gruesomely murdered.

Naturally, Marlon Brando ("The Island of Dr. Moreau") is excellent as the perverse Quint who has a sadomasochistic relationship with the beautiful Miss Jessel, (buxom Stephanie Beacham of "Schizo" and "And Now the Screaming Starts). Orphans Miles and Flora are left to their own devises because their wealthy uncle is away on business. Therefore, they spend too much time spying on Quint and Ms. Jessel. The children develop perverse, amoral beliefs about love, life, and the hereafter. They learn that pain is good and hating someone means that you love them.

Beautifully shot and well directed, "The Nightcomers" is an interesting example of gothic horror. Unfortunately, it is very slow paced. The modern viewer will become too bored. It doesn't pick up any steam until the final ten minutes. The finale is horrifying and shocking, but it is not worth the wait.

It is recommended that you rent "The Nightcomers" before purchasing.

Brando was once again overlooked in this brilliant performance. the movie itself might not be as good as "the innocents", but his acting is superb. he was nominated for a BAFTA, but not an OSCAR. widescreen format shows beautiful country. very worthwhile, though sordid story as expected.