The defence The Arthouse Gremlin
“Its refusal to behave is the point.”
The strange choices create the kind of friction that follows you out of the theatre and into the argument.
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The Night Stalker
Mystery · Horror · Thriller · 1972
Wisecracking reporter Carl Kolchak investigates a string of murders in Las Vegas and suspects the culprit is a vampire. His editor thinks he's crazy and the police think he's a nuisance, so Kolchak takes matters into his own hands.
Movie details
The Night Stalker
“A real horror story…”
1972 Mystery · Horror · Thriller 1h 14m
Critical arithmetic
One number, for now.
Scores change. Arguments endure.
TMDB
6.9 / 10
Community rating
Wisecracking reporter Carl Kolchak investigates a string of murders in Las Vegas and suspects the culprit is a vampire. His editor thinks he's crazy and the police think he's a nuisance, so Kolchak takes matters into his own hands.
CriticWise case file
What this film says about your taste.
Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.
The archetype split
Who fights over The Night Stalker?
For the defence
The Arthouse Gremlin
“The stranger, the better.”
Read their case For the prosecution
The Popcorn Loyalist
“Big screen, big feelings, no apologies.”
Read their objectionThe split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.
Taste neighbourhood
Nearby on the taste map.
TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.
The Dark Mirror
Thriller · 1946
A sister and her disturbed twin are implicated in a murder and a police detective must figure out which one's the killer.
Maniac
Crime · 1963
When a stranger enters a quiet, country town and is seduced by a sensuous married woman he unwittingly finds himself at the centre of a storm of sexual guilt and murder.
The Night Strangler
TV Movie · 1973
After being run out of Las Vegas, reporter Carl Kolchak heads for Seattle and another reporting job with the local paper. It's not long before he’s on the trail of another string of bizarre murders. It seems that every 21 years, for the past century, a killer murders a certain number of people, drains them of their blood, and then disappears into the night. Kolchak is on his trail, but can he stop him?
Doctor Who: Planet of the Dead
Sci-fi · 2009
A meeting in a London bus with jewel thief Lady Christina takes a turn for the worse for the Doctor when the bus takes a detour to a desert-like planet, where the deadly Swarm awaits.
The Mean Season
Mystery · 1985
A routine investigation of a shocking murder takes a bizarre twist when the killer contacts the reporter and appoints him his personal spokesman. As the killer's calls and clues increase, the reporter is lured into a deadly trap.
The Glass Key
Crime · 1942
A crooked politician finds himself being accused of murder by a gangster from whom he refused help during a re-election campaign.
The Scarlet Claw
Mystery · 1944
When a woman is found dead with her throat torn out, the local villagers blame a supernatural monster. But Sherlock Holmes, who gets drawn into the case from nearby Quebec, suspects a human murderer.
Hailey Dean Mysteries: Deadly Estate
Mystery · 2017
When Hailey helps her friend Pam sell her recently deceased parent’s estate, she becomes suspicious when Pam suddenly leaves town without notice. To make matters worse, Pam's boyfriend is the sudden victim of an accident and the man Hailey's dating, Assistant Medical Examiner Dr. Jonas McClellan, falls critically ill. Now Hailey must determine: Are all these events a coincidence?
Lady in the Lake
Mystery · 1946
Private eye Phillip Marlowe wants to get out of the detective racket and into crime writing. But when he's called to the office of editor Adrienne Fromsett, it's not to talk about his story ideas — she wants him to locate the missing wife of her boss, Mr. Kingsby. The assignment quickly becomes complicated when bodies start turning up.
The Mirror Crack'd
Mystery · 1980
Jane Marple solves the mystery when a local woman is poisoned and a visiting movie star seems to have been the intended victim.
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Names above the title
The people responsible.
Cast & crew
Directed by
John Llewellyn Moxey
Written by
Richard Matheson
Darren McGavin
Carl Kolchak
Carol Lynley
Gail Foster
Simon Oakland
Tony Vincenzo
Ralph Meeker
Bernie Jenks
Claude Akins
Sheriff Warren A. Butcher
Charles McGraw
Police Chief Ed Masterson
Kent Smith
District Attorney Tom Paine
Court is in session
Put The Night Stalker on trial.
Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.
The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist
“Oddness is not depth.”
A film can break every rule and still leave nothing behind but the memory of how hard it tried to be singular.