''Fear in the Night'' is an American 1947 film noir crime film directed by

Maxwell Shane Maxwell Shane (August 26, 1905 – October 25, 1983) was an American movie and television director, screenwriter, and producer. Biography Before embarking in a career in show business, Shane studied law at USC and UCLA law schools. He later b ...

, starring Paul Kelly and DeForest Kelley (in his film debut). It is based on the

Cornell Woolrich Cornell George Hopley Woolrich ( ; December 4, 1903 – September 25, 1968) was an American novelist and short story writer. He sometimes used the pseudonyms William Irish and George Hopley. His biographer, Francis Nevins Jr., rated Woolrich th ...

story "And So to Death" (retitled '"Nightmare" in 1943). Woolrich is credited under pen name William Irish. The film was remade by the same director in 1956 with the title '' Nightmare'' this time starring Edward G. Robinson playing the cop and

Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is an American politician, serving as House Minority Leader in the United States House of Representatives since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as House Majority Leader under spea ...

Plot

Bank teller Vince Grayson (DeForest Kelley) dreams that he stabs a man in an octagonal room of mirrors and locks the body in a closet. When he wakes up, he discovers marks on his throat, a strange key and a button in his pocket, and blood on his cuff. Cliff Herlihy (Paul Kelly), his police officer brother-in-law, tries to convince him it was just a dream. A few days later, while trying to find cover from the rain, the pair finds themselves taking shelter in the strange house from Vince's dream, which is owned by a Mr. and Mrs. Belknap. They discover that the police found two bodies at the house, one in the mirrored room and one run over in the driveway. Mrs. Belknap, who was run over by a car, gave the police a description matching Vince before she died. At first Vince is hopeful that he is innocent because he does not know how to drive, but he recognizes the victims from his dream. Overcome with remorse, he attempts suicide, but is rescued by Cliff. The detective uncovers clues that point to an evil hypnotist (Robert Emmett Keane) manipulating Vince. They realize that the hypnotist is actually Mr. Belknap in disguise, and they try to trap him by pretending that Vince wants hush money. Belknap puts Vince under hypnosis and tries to get him to drown himself. Cliff rescues him from the lake and Mr. Belknap is killed in a car accident as he is trying to evade the police. It is implied that Vince will be acquitted of all charges since he killed the man in the mirrored room in self-defense.

Cast

* Paul Kelly as Cliff Herlihy * DeForest Kelley as Vince Grayson *

Ann Doran Ann Lee Doran (July 28, 1911 – September 19, 2000) was an American character actress, possibly best known as the mother of Jim Stark (James Dean) in ''Rebel Without a Cause'' (1955). She was an early member of the Screen Actors Guild and serv ...

as Lil Herlihy * Kay Scott as Betty Winters * Charles C. Victor as Captain Warner *

Robert Emmett Keane Robert Emmett Keane (March 4, 1883 – July 2, 1981) was an American actor of both the stage and screen. Biography Keane began on stage in the 1910s, his first Broadway appearance being in the production of '' The Passing Show of 1914''. He co ...

as Lewis Belknap, aka Harry Byrd *

Jeff York Jeff York (March 23, 1912 – October 11, 1995) was an American film and television actor who began his career in the late 1930s using his given name, Granville Owen Scofield. He was also sometimes credited as Jeff Yorke. Career York served in ...

as Deputy Torrence

Production

The film's original title was ''Nightmare''. It was shot in ten days. It was also known as ''Dead of Night''.

Reception

When the film was released the film critic for ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' panned the film, writing, "''Fear in the Night'', a minor shocker which opened at the Rialto yesterday, is just about as ridiculous as any that comes in this line ... It is not only silly but rather dull. DeForest Kelley is dopey as the

fall guy Fall guy is a colloquial phrase that refers to a person to whom blame is deliberately and falsely attributed in order to deflect blame from another party. Origin The origin of the term "fall guy" is unknown and contentious. Many sources place ...

and Paul Kelly is brisk as his detective friend." More recently, film critic Dennis Schwartz was more positive and liked the film, writing, "An excellent low-budget psychological thriller directed and written by Maxwell Shane that is based on the story "Nightmare" by Cornell Woolrich. Cinematographer Greenhalgh's shadowy black and white photography gives it a film noir look ... The taut pulp story, dreamy atmospheric settings and brooding mood throughout, all serve the film well. The crisp acting was just right. DeForest Kelley, in his debut performance, does a fine job as the innocent victim."Schwartz, Dennis
. ''Ozus' World Movie Reviews'', film review, September 24, 2004. Accessed: July 8, 2013.

References

External links

* * * * *
''Fear in the Night''
informational site and DVD review at DVD Beaver (includes images)

analysis by author Thomas C. Renzi at Film Noir of the Week
Review
at ''Variety''

Streaming audio

''Nightmare''
on Suspense: March 13, 1948. Radio drama of story on which the movie was based. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fear In The Night (1947 Film) 1947 films 1940s crime thriller films American black-and-white films Film noir Films about hypnosis Films based on short fiction Films directed by Maxwell Shane Paramount Pictures films Films based on works by Cornell Woolrich American crime thriller films 1940s English-language films 1940s American films