Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

It is a performances centric movie

Good story, Not enough for a whole film

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

This 1945 film opens with Architect Walter Craig driving to a house in the English countryside. He immediately feels uneasy; he has never been there before or met any of the people present but states that he has dreamt about them many times before... this recurring dream always ends badly! Of those present only Dr Van Straaten is sceptical and soon each of them tells their own story with spooky elements. In between these stories the evening advances as Craig predicted.One usually associates Ealing Studios with their classic comedies but apart from the 'Golfing Story', told by one of the people in the house, there are few laughs to be had. There may not be gore or the 'nastiness' of more modern horror films but there are a few nicely chilling moments. Of the five stories told I found 'The Haunted Mirror' and 'The Ventriloquist's Dummy' to be the creepiest. The level of scares means this is suitable for most ages although elements may be disturbing for younger viewers. Some elements may seem a little cliché now but that is because later works have been inspired by this; it is original for films of its era. The cast does a fine job bringing the various stories to life; each fitting the tone of the section they feature in. Overall I'd definitely recommend this to anybody wanting gentle chills rather than gore and terror.

Dead of Night is the first horror anthology movie. In this sense, it is a very original piece of work. Since it was released we have seen all manner of horror omnibus movies, with the British studio Amicus becoming specialists in the sub-genre and producing seven different examples in the 60's and 70's, while there were also notable examples submitted by legendary horror directors such as Mario Bava and George Romero with, respectively, Black Sabbath (1963) and Creepshow (1982). But the fact is that Dead of Night still remains the all-time classic of this type of movie and is a film which is still quite chilling in places. It was made, perhaps somewhat unsurprisingly by the British production company Ealing Studios who are best known today for their series of well-respected comedies. This was their only foray into the realms of horror and it certainly can be regarded as an unqualified success. An architect experiences strong déjà vu on a weekend trip to a country estate where several strangers assemble for undefined reasons. He explains his discomforting feelings to the guests, prompting each one to recount an inexplicable story from their past. The format amounts to five tales of supernatural horror, tied together with an ingenious framing story.The first segment has a hospitalised man suddenly realise that despite it being the dead of night it is a sunny outside. He looks out the window and sees a hearse, the driver of which turns to him and says 'there's just room for one more inside sir'. This decidedly odd event acts as a sinister warning. The second story has a girl unknowingly encounter a ghostly presence in a secret room in a mansion during a Christmas party. The third segment involves a man who comes into possession of a cursed antique mirror that reflects a mysterious room from the past; this ghostly dimension slowly drives him murderously insane. The fourth story is what would go on to be a staple of the sub-genre, the comedy interlude, it tells a tale about a couple of golfing rivals who both fall in love with the same girl. They play a game of golf, with the winner getting the girl but this leads to disaster. The final story concerns a ventriloquist who has a very unusual relationship with his dummy.The final story is the one which is mostly mentioned as being the best of the segments and with very good reason. This is the story which still has the power to chill and has a very creepy atmosphere throughout. It is helped by a great performance from Michael Redgrave as the troubled ventriloquist. It is an idea that has been repeated several times over the years but there is no question that this superlative segment is the definitive execution. This great mix of horror with strong psychological elements plays on the creepiness of the dummy itself and still has the power to chill the viewer even today. The haunted mirror segment is likewise another idea which has gone on to be re-used several times over the years in other films but again it is delivered beautifully here. All the segments are very good with the exception of the golfing story, which while quite enjoyable just felt a bit too unnecessarily silly to fit the tone of the rest of the film. Easily as good as anything on offer in the various tales is the wraparound framing story. This extremely clever idea works beautifully and is made, if anything, even more sinister in that it plays out in the middle of the afternoon, giving it an even more off-kilter tone if anything. The final montage which references all the previous stories in a dream-like spiral nightmare sequence is quite frankly an out-and-out classic of the horror genre. And then directly after this, the true horror of the architect's situation is revealed in a subtle and sinister manner as the credits roll...This truly is one of the most effective of all the pre-60's horror movies and is an absolute must-see for anyone at all interested in the genre.

An architect (Mervyn Johns) senses impending doom as his half-remembered recurring dream turns into reality. The guests at the country house encourage him to stay as they take turns telling supernatural tales.British anthologies really took off in the 1970s with my favorite studio, Amicus. But here we have Ealing, not known for their horror films, making an anthology in the 1940s. That is way ahead of the pack (excluding earlier German films like "Waxworks" and "Eerie Tales").For the most part, this is a really good one. It runs a bit long, and perhaps one of the weaker segments could have been cut. But some of the scenes (such as the haunted mirror) are really good and can almost stand on their own. And then when we get the big reveal, it is terrifying, both for us and our protagonist.While I still prefer the Cushing-Lee anthologies of the 70s, this is well worth checking out for those who are not familiar.

The architect Walter Craig (Mervyn Johns) drives to a farmhouse in the countryside of London and he is welcomed by the owner, Eliot Foley (Roland Culver), who introduces him the psychiatrist Dr. Van Straaten (Frederick Valk), his friend Joan Cortland (Googie Withers), his young neighbor Sally O'Hara (Sally Ann Howes) and the race car driver Hugh Grainger (Antony Baird). Craig tells that he has the sensation of Déjà vu since he had had a nightmare with them in that house but one lady is missing. However Mrs. Foley (Mary Merrall) arrives completing the characters of his dream.The skeptical Dr. Van Straaten does not believe in supernatural but the guests tell supernatural events that they have lived. Grainger had a car accident and then a premonition that saved his life; Sally had met a ghost during the Christmas; Eliot and his wife had lived an evil experience with a haunted mirror; two golfers that loved the same woman and decide to dispute her in a game, but one of them dies and haunt the other; and Dr. Van Straaten tells the story of a ventriloquist with double personality that is dominated by his dummy. But when Dr. Van Straaten accidentally breaks his classes and the power goes out, the nightmare begins."Dead of Night" is an original horror tale that is certainly the source of inspiration to "The Twilight Zone", "Tales From The Crypt", "Vault of Horror", "Creepshow", "Tales From the Darkside: the Movie" where the screenplay discloses a main story and many segments. The final twist is totally unexpected and a plus in this little great movie. My vote is eight.Title (Brazil): "Na Solidão da Noite" ("In the Solitude of the Night")