The Long Night (1947)

Synopsis: Told almost entirely in flashback, THE LONG NIGHT reveals how Joe Adams (Henry Fonda), a World War II veteran trying to adjust to civilian life, comes to murder second-rate magician and con man Maximilian (eerily played by Vincent Price). Since the murder, Joe has locked himself in his... Told almost entirely in flashback, THE LONG NIGHT reveals how Joe Adams (Henry Fonda), a World War II veteran trying to adjust to civilian life, comes to murder second-rate magician and con man Maximilian (eerily played by Vincent Price). Since the murder, Joe has locked himself in his apartment, hiding from the police while trying to recall the events that led up to this horrifying moment. The flashbacks use surreal imagery and film noir storytelling to show Joe's life as a sandblaster in a grimy mill town on the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. It is here that he meets the lovely dreamer, Jo Ann (Barbara Bel Geddes), who desperately wants to escape her dull life. When magician Maximilian and his assistant, Charlene (Ann Dvorak), come to town, the creepy magician tries to con Joe and seduce Jo Ann, with the situation steadily escalating. Featuring an all-night police battle scene and Fonda's deft performance, director Anatole Litvak's THE LONG NIGHT makes for a gritty, engaging drama. [More]