Ealing studios' only foray into the horror genre resulted in a fine film indeed. Ealing studios are, of course, best known for their eloquent and inventive comedy, of which I am a big fan, but this effort certainly proves them worthy of creating hits in other genres, and it's a shame that they didn't make more horror. Dead of Night is often cited as being the first 'omnibus' style horror film (a style that would later be rekindled in the 60's by Mario Bava's "Black Sabbath"), and that is another thing that this film will be fondly remembered for, aside from it being a damn fine movie.
Like many later omnibus style horror movies, the tales in this one aren't all as great as each other - but unlike many, it doesn't feature any weak links either. The first two tales are simple, yet effective ghost stories that tell stories that would later go on to influence entire movies in an efficient manner. I'm not a big fan of ghost stories as they tend to drag out something that could easily be told in half the time; but here that isn't a problem as the tales are short and therefore the film doesn't have to clog up it's running time with lots and lots of dreary back-building to try and make the stories work. Our scene opens with an architect, called Walter Craig, arriving at a house where he has a promise of some work; only to find that the situation he finds himself in resembles that of a recurring nightmare he's been suffering with. We later discover that he's been the victim of some ghostly goings on, and he tells us this through his story of a hearse driver that has warned him of his death. The first tale isn't all that impressive, but it prepares the audience for a quadruple helping of lovely little ghost stories nicely.
As mentioned, the second tale isn't all that impressive either, but it's still rather decent and a damn sight more chilling than the likes of 'The Sixth Sense'. It's after the first two stories that the film really picks up, and the third tale is an absolute delight. It tells the story of a woman that buys a mirror as a present for her fiancé, only to find that the mirror once belonged to a lord that slowly a drove himself insane; a fate that promises to befall her fiancé also. This tale works thanks to simplicity and constant intrigue. Nothing is over the top about it, and we're fed information very much on a 'need to know' basis; and because the tale is so intriguing, we very much want to know. The film then takes a turn more towards what Ealing would become famous for with the golfing tale. This one is a departure from the others are there's much more comedy involved, and it doesn't concentrate on scaring the audience at all. It's then that we're catapulted into the movie's showpiece tale; the absolutely magnificent 'The Ventriloquist's Dummy'. This tale is nothing short of perfect and features of the most frightening, yet underused articles of horror imagery in history - of course I mean the dummy itself. This tale actually manages to be quite frightening through it's use of atmosphere and the way that the dummy is used. It works on both a straight horror and a psychological level.
Dead of Night breathes that familiar Ealing style, as words such as 'besmirch' and 'crackers' are used often and it's all very British. This film represents how jaded modern audiences have become with it's tales that work due to simplicity rather than over the top scares or special effects. The style of the movie is a delight to view, and despite being a horror movie; the eloquent edge blends well with it. Dead of Night is often cited as one of the films that helped to create what would become the modern horror movie, and that alone is reason enough to see it. When you consider that the film is also a damn fine horror in itself, you've got a must see.
