Culturebox: The Greatest One-Off in Movie History

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dvd extras The Greatest One-Off in Movie History The Night of the Hunter, Charles Laughton's only film, influenced Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee, and the Coen brothers. By Elbert Ventura Posted Tuesday, Nov. 9, 2010, at 10:12 AM ET "When I first went to the movies, audiences sat in their seats straight. Now they slump down with their heads back, or eat candy and popcorn," said esteemed actor Charles Laughton when it was announced that he would be directing his first feature film. "I want them to sit up straight again." But when The Night of the Hunter opened in 1955, critics remained slumped in their seats while moviegoers barely filled the seats at all. The film came and went, and its failure broke Laughton's heart. He would never direct another film. Fast-forward to this week's Criterion canonization of Laughton's film. In the years since his death in 1962, Night of the Hunter has grown larger in the cultural memory, first as a cult movie, then as a bona fide classic. It has earned an unusual place in cinema lore, perhaps the greatest one-off in movie history, and become one of the most quoted American films--traces of its DNA can be found in the films of Martin Scorsese, Terrence Malick, the Coen brothers, and Spike Lee. You can see what draws them to it: Equal parts Griffith and German Expressionism, Capra and Grimm, it is also thoroughly American, a collage of fragments from our collective dream life. The irony is that it took a British director to give us the most magical filmed portrait of the dread and dream of the American pastoral. To continue reading, click here. Elbert Ventura is a writer in Washington, D.C. Join the Fray: our reader discussion forum What did you think of this article? POST A MESSAGE | READ MESSAGES Also In Slate Dickerson: Sarah Palin Deleted My Reasonable, Harmless Comments on Facebook! With His Relaunch on TBS, Conan Becomes an Icon How Does the Government Decide Which Terrorism Tips To Actually Investigate?	Advertisement
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