Night Comes Too Soon

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Night Comes Too Soon
Night Comes Too Soon.jpg
American poster
Directed by Denis Kavanagh
Written by
Produced by Harold Baim
Starring
Cinematography Ray Densham
Edited by Dorothy Elliot
Production
companies
Distributed by Butcher's Film Service
Release date
  • 24 May 1948 (1948-05-24)
Running time
52 minutes
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish

Night Comes Too Soon (U.S. tite: The Ghost of Rashmon Hall; also known as AGhost Story) is a 1948 British second feature ('B') [1] horror film directed by Denis Kavanagh and starring Valentine Dyall, Anne Howard and Alec Faversham. [2] It was written by Pat Dixon based on the story The Haunters and the Haunted by Edward Bulwer-Lytton, [1] and also incorporates the "changing picture" component from The Mezzotint by M. R. James.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Cast

Production

It was shot at a manor house near Mill Hill, part of a trend of renting country houses rather than studio space by low-budget producers after the Second World War. [1]

Reception

The Monthly Film Bulletin wrote: "The story, as filmed, is unlikely to chill any spines, and those who have read or seen Lord Lytton's play The Haunted and the Haunters, of which this is an adaptation, will scarcely consider it an impressive piece of work. Those who have not will wonder what it is all about. The film's chief interest lies in the effective use of lighting in the 'ghostly' sequences." [3]

Kine Weekly wrote: "Valentine Dyall impresses in a theatrical sort of way as George Clinton, but Anne Howard and Alec Faversham lack screen experience as Phyllis and John. The rest are merely stooges." [4]

In British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959 David Quinlan rated the film as "mediocre", writing: "Dreary chiller with no scares." [5]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Chibnall, Steve; McFarlane, Brian (2009). The British 'B' Film. London: BFI/Bloomsbury. p. 118. ISBN   978-1-8445-7319-6.
  2. ↑ "Night Comes Too Soon". British Film Institute Collections Search. Retrieved 22 September 2024.
  3. ↑ "Night Comes Too Soon" . The Monthly Film Bulletin . 15 (169): 16. 1 January 1948 – via ProQuest.
  4. ↑ "Night Comes Too Soon" . Kine Weekly . 371 (2124): 17. 15 January 1948 – via ProQuest.
  5. ↑ Quinlan, David (1984). British Sound Films: The Studio Years 1928–1959. London: B.T. Batsford Ltd. p. 234. ISBN   0-7134-1874-5.


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