The Long Night (1947)

As the credits dissolve into the dim haze of a worn-out town, we follow the uncertain steps of a blind man. His destination: a ramshackle boarding house shrouded in mystery. His arrival is punctuated by a gunshot ringing from one of the upstairs bedrooms, jarring the silent air. A door swings open, revealing not just a room, but a gateway into a tale of deception and disillusionment. A man stumbles out, tumbling down the stairwell in a desperate ballet of death. His lifeless body at the bottom is our introduction to a complex narrative that rewinds time, spiraling into a web of flashbacks within flashbacks. Joe Adams, a blue-collar war veteran and a beacon of camaraderie amidst the rusted ruins of the industrial town, is inexplicably entangled in a lethal quarrel with Maximilian, a flamboyant magician whose life he ends in an act as perplexing as its motive. Despite being surrounded by a sea of police and snipers, Joe's spirit remains unbroken in his cramped apartment, which now doubles as his fortress. His only escape is within the depths of his memories, as he navigates the labyrinth of his past during the relentless siege. In the heart of this tangle, we meet two contrasting women, both bound to Joe and Maximilian by a shared past. Jo Ann, a beacon of purity in this gritty world, and Charlene, a hardened showgirl whose sparkle has dulled over time, embody the duality of love. Joe, weary from the horrors of war, learns a brutal lesson in betrayal as he discovers the secret that ties these women to the boastful, taunting, and now deceased Maximilian. "The Long Night" is not just a tale of a murder, but a journey into the heart of a man wrestling with love, betrayal, and the haunting ghosts of his past, all under the suffocating cloak of a relentless manhunt.

The Long Night is a crime movie featuring Vincent Price and directed by Anatole Litvak.

The Long Night is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

It is also possible to buy The Long Night on Amazon Video.