Nightfall 1956

imdb-logo 7.2 / 10

Nightfall

An innocent man turns fugitive as he reconstructs events that implicate him for a murder and robbery he did not commit.

An innocent man turns fugitive as he reconstructs events that implicate him for a murder and robbery he did not commit.

Videos & Photos

All 1 Videos & 16 Photos

... James Vanning / Art Rayburn

... Marie Gardner

... Laura Fraser

... Ben Fraser

... Dr. Edward Gurston

User reviews

See All 2 Reviews

23 Jun 2021 by Steve

By Kim Morgan filmnoiroftheweek.com “This is what they call the point of no return my friend.” Nightfall is a work of striking juxtapositions and tones that by picture end, come off like a wonderfully disarming person—you’re charmed, even a bit disturbed, but you’re not sure what to make of it all. It opens at night, in the neon lit, Los Angeles jungle shimmering with welcoming Hollywood haunts like Miceli’s, Firefly and Musso and Frank and ends within the blinding white snow of the more foreboding Wyoming Wilderness. It pits an older doctor and his much younger, artist friend against two thugs, one an over-eager, violence-lusting psychopath and the other a casual, smarter killer whose relaxed approach borders on the likable. It features a chic fashion show with a modern looking Anne Bancroft as a “mannequin” followed by a cuddly rural bus ride during which the lovers express their romantic feelings after waking up to (decidedly non chic) whiskers. There’s cruel violence committed against good Samaritans mixed with quippy one liners and a surprising amount of dark humor. And did I mention Anne Bancroft falls in love with Aldo Ray? They seem mismatched, but then, perfect together—and their moments are exceptionally romantic. In short, Nightfall is a trip. But a great trip, and a noteworthy addition to noir innovator Jacques Tourneur’s oeuvre (which includes, among other splendid pictures, the horror/noir classics Cat People and I Walked With a Zombie and his key noir, Out of the Past). Adapted by Stirling Silliphant from hard boiled writer David Goodis's 1947 novel and brilliantly shot by Burnett Guffey (who also shot Nicholas Ray’s masterpiece In a Lonely Place and Arthur Penn’s ingenious Bonnie and Clyde),the picture is considered by some, a minor film noir, something that’s always baffled me. Made in the later cycle of the genre (released in 1957), the picture skillfully weaves a convoluted story, harsh violence, existential angst, naturalistic acting and sweet romanticism without ever feeling forced. And as stated earlier—it’s very funny—something Tourneur always intended. And though the theme song seems a bit overheated (Al Hibbler crooning “Nightfall…and you!”—a tune that really ought to grace a Ross Hunter production) even that works when looking at the film in its entirety. Akin to the startling laughs spiking the movie, it echoes Tourneur’s own sly sense of humor. The story is structured much like Out of the Past, with our hero (who's not guilty, unlike Mitchum), Rayburn Vanning (Ray) relating his complicated story to a woman. Only in this instance, the lovely lady, Marie Gardner (Bancroft), is a bit confused. Pulling a damsel in distress act for the benefit of two thugs waiting to jump Ray (she thought they were police officers after a wanted man), she sets up the poor lug. Vanning is then accosted by Red (Rudy Bond) and John (Brian Keith) and taken to a deserted oil derrick (an unsettling yet weirdly amusing scene) where he’s set to be tortured. They want to know where that money’s hidden, something Vanning continually states he doesn’t know. Vanning escapes, finds his way to Marie’s apartment and gives her the skinny. Or rather, the thick skinny. He explains the convoluted predicament that’s left him understandably paranoid. While on a pleasant camping trip in Jackson Hole, Wyoming with best friend Dr. Edward Gurston (Frank Albertson) in which the two men will hunt, and in a more uncomfortable moment, near the sticky subject of Doc’s much younger wife (whom we learn later has a thing for Vanning and sent him letters saying so). The conversation is cut short when a car crashes off an embankment and two shady characters (Red and John), emerge. Doc fixes John’s arm but they soon realize they're unlucky witnesses (the men just robbed a bank). Almost shockingly, Doc is shot dead and Vanning is left injured. The crooks blaze off, only, they make an enormous mistake—they grab the doctor’s bag instead of their own bag of money. Vanning is able to rise from his injury, hide the dough and take off. Moving from town to town under suspicion that he killed Doc, Vanning ends up in Los Angeles, where he’s being tailed by insurance investigator Ben Fraser (James Gregory) who confesses to his wife that Vanning just doesn’t seem the type. And as played by Aldo Ray—he doesn’t seem the type. One of the more striking aspects to Nightfall is its casting, and the barrel-chested, thick necked Ray, who was a natural born actor (watch his first and largely unschooled leading role in George Cukor’s The Marrying Kind and you’ll see how immediately gifted the man was. Also in Anthony Mann’s brilliant Men in War). Ray is the perfect good guy in-over-his- head. With his raspy voice, yet boyish appeal (he looked like he literally walked off a football field, which is why Cukor made him take ballet before The Marrying Kind) Ray always exuded a different kind of mystery than say, Mitchum or Ryan or Widmark—men who rarely appeared “normal.” Ray, an ex Frogman who fought in Iwo Jima, was a brawny man’s man certainly, but he always looked to be hiding a secret. That inside he had the soul of a poet or artist—a man of depth beyond his tough exterior. And so, appropriately, in Nightfall, he’s an artist. Brian Keith is another standout and like Ray, an actor I always wished was my father (and not merely for the TV show Family Affair). He’s so agreeable here—and his delivery manages to be both distracted and pithy rather than rat-a-tat. When he humorously claims that Red’s homicidal kicks stem from his lack of childhood play (“When Red was a kid they didn’t have enough playgrounds. He’s sort of an adult delinquent.”) he’s both revelatory and teasing. And his banter towards Red is cleverly berating: “The top of your head never closed up when you were a kid. Neither did your mouth.” Cracking wise with Red, the two spar like men who are ready to kill each other, but also who are simply getting on each other’s nerves (preceding some of Tarantino’s talky criminals). But talking aside, deadlier fates await them including a fatal gunshot and death by snowplow. And wild, almost ridiculous fate was something Tourneur excelled at, not surprisingly. Based on the bizarre treatment at the hands of his filmmaker father, Tourneur developed a dark sense of the absurd. As written in John Wakemen’s “World Film Directors Vol. 1 1890-1946,”Tourneur believed that the childhood he endured—one of “grotesque punishment” lied at the root of his cinematic obsessions. Relating that he was sent to a poor school and teased unmercifully for his square suspenders, Tourneur claimed: “I think this is what prompted me to introduce comic touches into the dramatic moments of my films…Mixing fear and the ridiculous can be very exciting.” Indeed. As Red can’t wait to torture a terrified Vanning, he sinisterly and bizarrely sings: “The tougher they are the more fun they are tra-la.”

Producers:

Ted Richmond

Release Date:

Nov 09, 1956 (United States)

Run Time:

1hr 18`

MMPA Rating:

NR

Original Language:

English

Production Countries:

United States

Status:

Released

Plot Keywords:

model film noir

Related Movies To

Nightfall

Write Review

Found 2 reviews in total

23 Jun 2021 by Steve

By Kim Morgan filmnoiroftheweek.com “This is what they call the point of no return my friend.” Nightfall is a work of striking juxtapositions and tones that by picture end, come off like a wonderfully disarming person—you’re charmed, even a bit disturbed, but you’re not sure what to make of it all. It opens at night, in the neon lit, Los Angeles jungle shimmering with welcoming Hollywood haunts like Miceli’s, Firefly and Musso and Frank and ends within the blinding white snow of the more foreboding Wyoming Wilderness. It pits an older doctor and his much younger, artist friend against two thugs, one an over-eager, violence-lusting psychopath and the other a casual, smarter killer whose relaxed approach borders on the likable. It features a chic fashion show with a modern looking Anne Bancroft as a “mannequin” followed by a cuddly rural bus ride during which the lovers express their romantic feelings after waking up to (decidedly non chic) whiskers. There’s cruel violence committed against good Samaritans mixed with quippy one liners and a surprising amount of dark humor. And did I mention Anne Bancroft falls in love with Aldo Ray? They seem mismatched, but then, perfect together—and their moments are exceptionally romantic. In short, Nightfall is a trip. But a great trip, and a noteworthy addition to noir innovator Jacques Tourneur’s oeuvre (which includes, among other splendid pictures, the horror/noir classics Cat People and I Walked With a Zombie and his key noir, Out of the Past). Adapted by Stirling Silliphant from hard boiled writer David Goodis's 1947 novel and brilliantly shot by Burnett Guffey (who also shot Nicholas Ray’s masterpiece In a Lonely Place and Arthur Penn’s ingenious Bonnie and Clyde),the picture is considered by some, a minor film noir, something that’s always baffled me. Made in the later cycle of the genre (released in 1957), the picture skillfully weaves a convoluted story, harsh violence, existential angst, naturalistic acting and sweet romanticism without ever feeling forced. And as stated earlier—it’s very funny—something Tourneur always intended. And though the theme song seems a bit overheated (Al Hibbler crooning “Nightfall…and you!”—a tune that really ought to grace a Ross Hunter production) even that works when looking at the film in its entirety. Akin to the startling laughs spiking the movie, it echoes Tourneur’s own sly sense of humor. The story is structured much like Out of the Past, with our hero (who's not guilty, unlike Mitchum), Rayburn Vanning (Ray) relating his complicated story to a woman. Only in this instance, the lovely lady, Marie Gardner (Bancroft), is a bit confused. Pulling a damsel in distress act for the benefit of two thugs waiting to jump Ray (she thought they were police officers after a wanted man), she sets up the poor lug. Vanning is then accosted by Red (Rudy Bond) and John (Brian Keith) and taken to a deserted oil derrick (an unsettling yet weirdly amusing scene) where he’s set to be tortured. They want to know where that money’s hidden, something Vanning continually states he doesn’t know. Vanning escapes, finds his way to Marie’s apartment and gives her the skinny. Or rather, the thick skinny. He explains the convoluted predicament that’s left him understandably paranoid. While on a pleasant camping trip in Jackson Hole, Wyoming with best friend Dr. Edward Gurston (Frank Albertson) in which the two men will hunt, and in a more uncomfortable moment, near the sticky subject of Doc’s much younger wife (whom we learn later has a thing for Vanning and sent him letters saying so). The conversation is cut short when a car crashes off an embankment and two shady characters (Red and John), emerge. Doc fixes John’s arm but they soon realize they're unlucky witnesses (the men just robbed a bank). Almost shockingly, Doc is shot dead and Vanning is left injured. The crooks blaze off, only, they make an enormous mistake—they grab the doctor’s bag instead of their own bag of money. Vanning is able to rise from his injury, hide the dough and take off. Moving from town to town under suspicion that he killed Doc, Vanning ends up in Los Angeles, where he’s being tailed by insurance investigator Ben Fraser (James Gregory) who confesses to his wife that Vanning just doesn’t seem the type. And as played by Aldo Ray—he doesn’t seem the type. One of the more striking aspects to Nightfall is its casting, and the barrel-chested, thick necked Ray, who was a natural born actor (watch his first and largely unschooled leading role in George Cukor’s The Marrying Kind and you’ll see how immediately gifted the man was. Also in Anthony Mann’s brilliant Men in War). Ray is the perfect good guy in-over-his- head. With his raspy voice, yet boyish appeal (he looked like he literally walked off a football field, which is why Cukor made him take ballet before The Marrying Kind) Ray always exuded a different kind of mystery than say, Mitchum or Ryan or Widmark—men who rarely appeared “normal.” Ray, an ex Frogman who fought in Iwo Jima, was a brawny man’s man certainly, but he always looked to be hiding a secret. That inside he had the soul of a poet or artist—a man of depth beyond his tough exterior. And so, appropriately, in Nightfall, he’s an artist. Brian Keith is another standout and like Ray, an actor I always wished was my father (and not merely for the TV show Family Affair). He’s so agreeable here—and his delivery manages to be both distracted and pithy rather than rat-a-tat. When he humorously claims that Red’s homicidal kicks stem from his lack of childhood play (“When Red was a kid they didn’t have enough playgrounds. He’s sort of an adult delinquent.”) he’s both revelatory and teasing. And his banter towards Red is cleverly berating: “The top of your head never closed up when you were a kid. Neither did your mouth.” Cracking wise with Red, the two spar like men who are ready to kill each other, but also who are simply getting on each other’s nerves (preceding some of Tarantino’s talky criminals). But talking aside, deadlier fates await them including a fatal gunshot and death by snowplow. And wild, almost ridiculous fate was something Tourneur excelled at, not surprisingly. Based on the bizarre treatment at the hands of his filmmaker father, Tourneur developed a dark sense of the absurd. As written in John Wakemen’s “World Film Directors Vol. 1 1890-1946,”Tourneur believed that the childhood he endured—one of “grotesque punishment” lied at the root of his cinematic obsessions. Relating that he was sent to a poor school and teased unmercifully for his square suspenders, Tourneur claimed: “I think this is what prompted me to introduce comic touches into the dramatic moments of my films…Mixing fear and the ridiculous can be very exciting.” Indeed. As Red can’t wait to torture a terrified Vanning, he sinisterly and bizarrely sings: “The tougher they are the more fun they are tra-la.”

03 Apr 2023 by drystyx

Aldo Ray metaphorically stumbles across mob money. Rudy Bond is a sadist who makes a game out of killing his victims, making them believe there is a contest involved. Brian Keith works with Rudy Bond, and is disgusted by him, till the sadist finally decides to try to kill him. James Gregory is investigating all of this, and feels he is in over his head, and discusses his insecurities with his wife. Sound familiar? Well, this was the original classic that McCarthy later went totally Hollywood formula with, but this one is the real deal. Here, the bad guys are just as mortal as the good guys. They aren't "gods" or "demi gods", which is too much for the Beavis and Butthead brats who make up much of the first world right now. This is a "mature" version, a version that isn't contrived, of three dimensional characters, or aptly put "credible characters in incredible circumstances", which is what separates the classic films from the disasters. Much of this tale is told in flashback, and I'm no fan of flashbacks, but this film is a classic notwithstanding, because we find the characters so credible.

Cast & Crew of

Nightfall

Directors & Credit Writers

Cast

Produced By

... Producer

Videos & Photos of

Nightfall

Videos ( 1)

Photos ( 16 )

Related Movies To

Nightfall

Found 12 Movies in total

poster-First Shift
First Shift (2024)

0 /10

NYPD veteran Mike and rookie Angela tackle a high-stakes day on New York's toughest streets, diving headfirst into a vortex of danger and action. Their adrenaline-fueled pursuits and unexpected threats unfold as they navigate perilous encounters. Amidst the chaos, intense challenges forge unbreakable bonds.

Run Time: 1hr 29` . MMPA: . Release: 30 Aug 2024

Director: Phillip Rush , Uwe Boll , Béla Baptiste

Producer: Anthony Argento , Ari Taub , Uwe Boll

Stars: Kristen Renton , Gino Anthony Pesi , Garry Pastore , James McMenamin , Willie C. Carpenter , Michael Emery

poster-28 Years Later
28 Years Later (2025)

0 /10

Twenty-eight years since the rage virus escaped a biological weapons laboratory, now, still in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amidst the infected. One such group lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily-defended causeway. When one member departs on a mission into the dark heart of the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors as well.

Run Time: 1hr 55` . MMPA: R . Release: 18 Jun 2025

Director: Sarah Mulberge , Lucy Hatherley , Danny Boyle

Producer: Cillian Murphy , Alex Garland , Bernard Bellew

Stars: Cillian Murphy , Aaron Taylor-Johnson , Jodie Comer , Charlie Hunnam , Jack O'Connell , Ralph Fiennes

poster-STRAW
STRAW (2025)

0 /10

What will be her last straw? A devastatingly bad day pushes a hardworking single mother to the breaking point — and into a shocking act of desperation.

Run Time: 1hr 45` . MMPA: R . Release: 05 Jun 2025

Director: Matt Hendren , Roger Berard , Tyler Perry

Producer: Nadia Brown , Angi Bones , Kim Taylor-Coleman

Stars: Taraji P. Henson , Sherri Shepherd , Teyana Taylor , Sinbad , Rockmond Dunbar , Ashley Versher

poster-Crypto Legacy
Crypto Legacy (2020)

2.5 /10

Troy Morgan doesn't like his family's farm. The place creeps him out. After spotting some strange lights one evening, Troy and his little sister Carrie go to investigate the creepy barn.

Run Time: 1hr 11` . MMPA: . Release: 01 Oct 2020

Director: Charles Townsend

Producer: Charles Townsend

Stars: Sheri Gill Dixon , Brian Kunz , Brandon Young , Nathaniel Barton , Linzi Gray , Thalia Reynolds

poster-Utopia
Utopia (2024)

0 /10

A soldier searching for his missing wife breaks into a high-tech facility, believing she's been caught in a human trafficking ring. But beyond its walls, he finds a surreal, futuristic fantasy park where reality and illusion blur. As he navigates this seductive and dangerous world, a shocking truth pulls him deeper into a deadly game where nothing is as it seems.

Run Time: 1hr 33` . MMPA: R . Release: 09 Dec 2024

Director: James Bamford

Producer: Kyle Otto , Scott Karol , Danail Hadzhiyski

Stars: Moe Dunford , Charlotte Vega , Michael D. Xavier , Daniel Bernhardt , Jason Flemyng , Wanda Banda

poster-The Amateur
The Amateur (2025)

0 /10

After his life is turned upside down when his wife is killed in a London terrorist attack, a brilliant but introverted CIA decoder takes matters into his own hands when his supervisors refuse to take action.

Run Time: 2hr 3` . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 09 Apr 2025

Director: James Hawes , Svetlana Punte

Producer: Jonathan Hook , Dan Wilson , Rami Malek

Stars: Rami Malek , Rachel Brosnahan , Caitríona Balfe , Laurence Fishburne , Holt McCallany , Jon Bernthal

poster-Remnant
Remnant (2024)

0 /10

Grace is a young woman whose life has been turned upside down by tragedy. When she returns home to the family farm to rebuild her shattered life, her world begins to unravel as a series of strange events haunt her, pushing Grace to the edge of madness. A mysterious figure lurks in the shadows and a ghostly woman appears in the darkness of night. Is Grace imagining these apparitions, or are they a warning of a nightmare still to come?

Run Time: 1hr 52` . MMPA: . Release: 30 Jun 2024

Director: Mike Horan

Producer:

Stars: Nicole Pritchard , Shaun Robert Foley , Tsu Shan Chambers , Remi Webster , Megan Bell , Martin Ashley Jones

poster-Diablo
Diablo (2025)

0 /10

Ex-con Kris Chaney seizes the daughter of a Colombian gangster to fulfill a noble promise to the young girl's mother. When her father enlists both the criminal underworld and a psychotic killer to exact his revenge, Kris relies on everything he's ever learned to stay alive and keep his word.

Run Time: 1hr 31` . MMPA: R . Release: 13 Jun 2025

Director: Ernesto Díaz Espinoza

Producer: Grady Craig , Francisco Carrillo , Scott Adkins

Stars: Scott Adkins , Marko Zaror , María del Rosario , Lucho Velasco , Diana Hoyos , Alanna de la Rosa

poster-Breathing In
Breathing In (2023)

0 /10

1901, South Africa. As the Second Anglo-Boer War rages on, a wounded General seeks refuge in the small home of a woman and her young daughter. As the hurt man settles in, he begins noticing that something is off about the two women, particularly the daughter, and before long, he’ll learn the real reason for why they’ve invited him and for how they’ve survived on their own for so long.

Run Time: 1hr 45` . MMPA: . Release: 18 Oct 2023

Director: Jaco Bouwer

Producer:

Stars: Michele Burgers , Sven Ruygrok , Jamie-Lee Money , Lionel Newton

poster-Sinners
Sinners (2025)

0 /10

Trying to leave their troubled lives behind, twin brothers return to their hometown to start again, only to discover that an even greater evil is waiting to welcome them back.

Run Time: 2hr 18` . MMPA: R . Release: 16 Apr 2025

Director: Marvin Williams , Amir R. Khan , Ryan Coogler

Producer: Zinzi Coogler , Andrew Lary , Will Greenfield

Stars: Michael B. Jordan , Jack O'Connell , Delroy Lindo , Jayme Lawson , Wunmi Mosaku , Hailee Steinfeld

poster-M3GAN 2.0
M3GAN 2.0 (2025)

0 /10

After the underlying tech for M3GAN is stolen and misused by a powerful defense contractor to create a military-grade weapon known as Amelia, M3GAN's creator Gemma realizes that the only option is to resurrect M3GAN and give her a few upgrades, making her faster, stronger, and more lethal.

Run Time: 2hr . MMPA: PG-13 . Release: 25 Jun 2025

Director: Pikky Lim , Guy Campbell , Gerard Johnstone

Producer: Allison Williams , Jon Romano , Brittany Fottrell

Stars: Allison Williams , Violet McGraw , Jenna Davis , Amie Donald , Joshua Bassett , Steven Seagal

poster-Predator: Killer of Killers
Predator: Killer of Killers (2025)

0 /10

While three of the fiercest warriors in human history—a Viking raider, a ninja in feudal Japan, and a WWII pilot—are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent: the ultimate killer of killers.

Run Time: 1hr 25` . MMPA: R . Release: 05 Jun 2025

Director: Dan Trachtenberg , Joshua Wassung

Producer: Lawrence Gordon , Marc Toberoff , Aari Reich

Stars: Lindsay LaVanchy , Louis Ozawa , Rick Gonzalez , Michael Biehn , Doug Cockle , Damien C. Haas