The Night of the Hunter and breaking into the colossal world of B&W film

Black and white films—particularly American offerings—can be challenging for new cinephiles. Even if it seems blasphemous to admit. You can practically hear Orson Welles rolling in his grave, or is that Hitchcock? Regardless, black and white films often struggle to connect with modern audiences. They were made in a different time, where different aspects of stories and filmmaking were emphasized. Filmmaking has come a long way and it can make it difficult to give movies from a bygone era their chance. It’s a Wonderful Life? Bah-humbug! Casablanca? Snooze-fest! Sunset Boulevard? More like Sunset Bored-evard. 

I hear you: “How could you say such things? These are classics!” True. No one is arguing that. However, when you say “classic” most people just hear “old.” Not that there's anything wrong with that. There are plenty of great things dated by time antiquing, thrifting, grandparents, paintings in museums, the list goes on. However, it can be viewed as outdated. Why spend time watching movies from a bygone era? Lots of movies come out every year, in color, with CGI and de-aged celebrities. Older films have trans-Atlantic accents, lots of cigarettes, and the sexual repression of a more puritan society. On the surface, black and white films have very little to offer modern moviegoers. Although, if you watch for long enough you begin to see that the limitations of filmmaking for that time bred a lot of innovation. You see how they get certain story elements past censors, or how do we visually tell stories without the use of color, or even the use of blocking and camera movement in a scene. Once you start to recognize these functions, suddenly a whole new world of films opens up. 

In order to get into black and white films, you may need something to launch you into it. A cinematic angel appeared to me in the form of Charles Laughton’s 1955 film The Night of the Hunter. Bursting with interesting film techniques, fun characters, and an amazing use of score from Walter Schumann. The Night of the Hunter gave me the epiphany; transforming any preconceived notions that black and white films are not cheesy, but delightful. 

Robert Mitchum, Lillian Gish, and Billy Chapin lead The Night of the Hunter, which follows Harry Powell—a corrupt preacher—who learns about a stash of money hidden somewhere in a family home by the patriarch. However, only the children know it’s hiding place. As Powell becomes more desperate to find this money, the film touches on duality and how people can appear good natured but have ulterior motives—as we obviously see this with the preacher—but it appears throughout the film in other ways. Powell approaches religion as a vehicle for vengeance, while Ms. Cooper approaches religion in a more nurturing way. Furthermore, how the townsfolk immediately welcome Harry Powell into their fold because of his preacher appearance while the children are immediately skeptical of him. Harry Powell even has a whole monologue giving a speech about the eternal battle between love and hate (a speech later lifted by Spike Lee for Do The Right Thing). It becomes clear that duality is a constant theme throughout the film, but The Night of the Hunter is at its best when it takes these themes and uses them beyond the screenplay and in the filmmaking itself, utilizing a different visual language than films in color. 

Black and white films limit the implementation of color theory, instead focusing on lighting, contrast, and what is revealed between them. One salient moment is when the oldest child, John, first sees the preacher while telling a bedtime story to his sister. He gazes at the wall of their bedroom, which is illuminated by a street lamp outside the window. Suddenly a black shadowy figure appears on the wall, a gigantic omen of what’s coming in the form of Powell, who quietly (and ominously) is singing his hymns on the street. Rather than being a source of light, the film’s preacher obscures the light and casts a daunting shadow.

Beyond the visual elements of the film, the cast is really phenomenal. It’s important to keep in mind, this is a time before they made any real distinction between stage acting and film acting. I think the acting in these films is what gets them the “cheesy” moniker, when it’s really more theatrical than we’re used to seeing in modern actors, who strive for realism. I could go on about Robert Mitchum, Shelly Winters, or Lilian Gish but the other players shine as well. Take the ice cream shop owners, Icey and Walt (played by Evelyn Varden and Don Beddoe, respectively). They are a riot and play off each other so well. Powell comes to visit the duo, distraught over his wife “running away,” and the two are at a loss for how to help. Walt recommends a little schnapps, which Icey immediately shoots down asking, “For a preacher?” Walt fires back with “just a sip!” As he takes a little schnapps for himself. A great comedic duo to break up some of the tension of this film. Uncle Birdie (played by James Gleason) is another stand out actor in this film. They give him so much to work with and he uses it all to great effect, including, his sad past as a widower and his good natured banter with John. You feel very endeared to him right from the start. We see lots of other characters for quick little scenes and they all make their presence known but not overpowering. The acting may not coincide “today’s standards” but it is still effective and it ends up being way more memorable. 

After seeing The Night of the Hunter a whole new world opened its doors. Comedies like To Be or Not to Be (Ernest Lubitsch, 1942) or Don’t Bother to Knock (Roy Ward Baker, 1952) or even Roman Holiday (William Wyler, 1953). All amazing movies that would have been glossed over by me because of some preconceived notions. The only thing that was truly holding me back from experiencing these amazing pieces of cinema, was myself. These surface level judgments, at the end of the day, were not built on an understanding of the media but just excuses for not wanting to expand my own library of films. Luckily I had The Night of the Hunter to break me out, but maybe for someone else it will be a different movie. The fun thing about watching movies is there’s so many to choose from; let down your guard and feel free to explore.