calvinnme
This film about a man, Salem (Max Von Sydow), sent to an insane asylum after being wrongfully convicted of the ax murder of a farm hand two years ago, who escapes at night to avenge himself of those that did him wrong by having a part in his imprisonment. And then somehow he lets himself back in without anybody at the asylum noticing.I never saw a location mentioned, but one imdb reviewer said it was Jutland, in Denmark.It is obvious from the beginning what Salem is doing once he is loose - he is trying to pin the murders that he is committing on the person he thinks actually committed the murder of the farm hand - Anton. But the police inspector (Trevor Howard) is having none of it. For one thing, Anton actually saw Salem in his house - Salem let the guy see him - so Anton would sound crazy when he talked to the inspector. Why would Anton make up this particular story, casting blame on a man who is locked up? And this has the inspector visiting the asylum to see if it would be possible for Salem to escape and then get back in, and it looks pretty impossible and yet...his doubts linger because he does not arrest Anton in spite of having plenty of evidence.This little thriller was pretty unique despite some implausibilities and some linguistic problems. Why is the asylum so close to the homes of the village in which Salem lived? How is he able to run through the woods for what looks like a few miles in his underwear in sub freezing weather without freezing to death? Wouldn't all of this been easier for Salem in the summertime? Why does half the cast sound Swedish and the other half sound British? In spite of this I really enjoyed this unique little film. And the final irony of the film is delightful.
johnastewart
It's awhile since I saw this movie but it really hooked me, especially seeing two old pros like Max Von Sydow and Trevor Howard going head to head. In looking at a few reviews I don't see much reference to his motivation which is what got me in and explains much of what he does. As I recall, an innocent man is found guilty of a murder committed by his unfaithful wife who frames him. To escape the death penalty he has to be certified criminally insane. If he's that way then he's in for life. Either way a no win. How he seeks to get square is ingenious and really tests Trevor Howard as the inspector. A real twist at the end that you will never forget. I haven't after 15 years or so since I last saw it. Terrific movie. Great acting and scenery. Definitely on my 'must have' list of movies.
GarethG
I remember catching 'The Night Visitor' on UK late night TV in the late 70's. At that time I'd not heard of it but was hooked from the outset. Many of the haunting images stayed with me and recently I got all nostalgic and started searching for either video or DVD releases of several lost gems from the early 70's, amongst them 'And Soon The Darkness', 'I Start Counting' and of course 'The Night Visitor'. Success!!! as all titles were available on DVD (some are deleted from obscure labels but all frequently pop up on Ebay for reasonable amounts). Strangely, having caught up with several long forgotten film or TV shows from my childhood, most have been disappointing, however 'The Night Visitor' retains it's menacing, almost surreal air and Max Von Sydow carries the film with great support from Trevor Howard (who seems to be setting the tone for his later appearance in 1973's 'The Offence') and I even recalled Arthur Hewlett as the prison guard with the gnome-like features. All in all a MUST for any Von Sydow fan and any lover of quirky psychological thrillers, low on budget but high on plot and intrigue.
kingofhorrormovies
i was looking for "the night visitor" for long time cuz im a big max von sydow fan,and i finally i found it undera strange title"Lunatic"which SURPRISINGLY not mentioned herein a.k.a section . the story are the same here: a mental patient (MVS as salem)justescaped from his asylum in his underwear and... sorry i won't spoil anything more here, , but this a real thriller and i recommend MVS fans to watch this movie its one of his better performance(after the exorcist 1 and 2 of course)hani (king of horror movies)
AD
