Night Unto Night (1949)

User Rating:

4.9/10   

Director:

Don Siegel

Writers:

Kathryn Scola (writer)
Philip Wylie (novel)

Release Date:

22 August 1949 (Sweden)

Genre:

Drama | Romance

Tagline:

Whatever it is, there's nothing you can't tell the woman you love.

Plot Keywords:

Contemplated Suicide | Beach House | Epilepsy | Old House | Seclusion

Cast

Ronald Reagan	...	John Galen
Viveca Lindfors	...	Ann Gracy
Broderick Crawford	...	C.L. Shawn
Rosemary DeCamp	...	Thalia Shawn
Osa Massen	...	Lisa
Art Baker	...	Dr. Poole
Craig Stevens	...	Tony Maddox
Erskine Sanford	...	Dr. Gallen Altheim
Ann Burr	...	Willa Shawn
Johnny McGovern	...	Willie Shawn
Lillian Yarbo	...	Josephine
Ross Ford	...	Bellboy
Almira Sessions	...	Hotel Maid
Dick Elliott	...	Auto Court Manager
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lois Austin	...	Mrs. Rose (scenes deleted)
Irving Bacon	...	Real Estate Agent (scenes deleted)
Billy Bletcher	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Jack Mower	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Paul Panzer	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Larry Rio	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Ramon Ros	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Leo White	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)
Jack Wise	...	Man in Hotel (scenes deleted)

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | USA:Approved (original rating) | USA:TV-G (TV rating) | Australia:G

Company:

Warner Bros. Pictures

Trivia:

Viveca Lindfors’ first Hollywood film.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Last Summer in the Hamptons (1995)

Soundtrack:

What's New?

A forgettable item among Reagan's resume at Warner Bros...

NIGHT UNTO NIGHT ('49) struggles to be a message film with something important to say about life and love--and does carry an unusual theme. However, despite the dramatic intensity in the performance of Swedish actress VIVECA LINDFORS (who looks radiant in all of her close-ups), no one else in the cast seems to be in the same picture. RONALD REAGAN seems to be sleepwalking through a role he clearly doesn't comprehend, displaying none of the emotional fireworks that Lindfors is capable of. He makes any notion of chemistry with Lindfors seem absurd. A stronger actor might have brought some credibility to his role of a botanist who keeps a dark secret from the woman he loves.

And unfortunately, the supporting roles are too colorless to add much to the proceedings. BRODERICK CRAWFORD is cast inexplicably as an artist in touch with "the truth" and OSSA MASSEN is a bit over the top in her drunken stupor as the jealous sister who reveals Reagan's dark secret to Lindfors at the height of a thunderstorm.

Could have been so much better with a tighter script and more emotional response from Reagan, but this is clearly not one of his better films at WB. Technically, the storm is a stunning sequence--too bad it isn't supporting a better script. Reagan redeemed himself later with some better roles at his home studio but this is clearly a dud.