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Crime Cult Classic

Max von Sydow haunts a wintry farm with vengeance and suspicion in this icy crime-horror cocktail.

THE NIGHT VISITOR

Locked in the cold asylum of his mind - a sane man stalks his prey...

1971 · 1h 46m · PG · Crime / Horror / Thriller · IMDB TMDB

A man named Salem escapes from an insane asylum where he was confined for an axe-murder. Falsely convicted under a plea of "guilty due to insanity", he does not plan to let his sister and her husband forget that they were responsible for the murder of a farmhand and for his cruel imprisonment in the asylum.

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Vault Note

Von Sydow proves winter isn’t the only thing that's chilling on this farm.

Programmer's Pick

When Max von Sydow's Salem slips out of the asylum and onto the snowy farmhouse, this Swedish-American chiller delivers icy family dysfunction with a vindictive edge. László Benedek wrings sinister atmosphere from both psychological games and physical menace. If you like your horror chilly and your motives ambiguous, this one's for you.

— SassyFlix Programmer
Quick Answer
What is The Night Visitor about?

The Night Visitor is a 1971 Sweden/USA crime, horror, and thriller film directed by László Benedek about Salem, a man institutionalized for murder, who escapes to exact retribution on his sister and her husband for their role in his imprisonment.

Synopsis

In the middle of winter in a farming community, two young women in two separate incidents are murdered in their respective beds in the middle of the same night: Britt Torens and Emmie, who died by strangulation and blunt force trauma to the head respectively. In the latter case, Dr. Anton Jenks, Emmie's brother-in-law - he married to Emmie's sister, Ester, the three of them who live on the farm passed down to the sisters and their older brother Salem in three equal shares by their father - is certain he saw Salem in Emmie's room, which is impossible as Salem has been institutionalized for two years. Salem was charged with the murder of one of their farmhands, Salem's barrister, Mr. Clemens, who convinced him to work toward an insanity plea. As such, Salem has been housed in the local insane asylum since. With the police investigation, there is circumstantial evidence that Anton may have killed both women, with his rants about seeing Salem only making him sound crazy. Ester indeed does believe Anton killed at least Emmie due to events from their collective lives. In reality, Anton really did see Salem, who, against the odds, had engineered an elaborate escape and reentry path in and out of the fortress that is the asylum. Salem has also devised a revenge plot against those who he felt wronged him in the case of the farmhand's murder, that revenge primarily against the person he knows did commit it.
Details & Specs
Director
László Benedek
Writers
Guy Elmes, Samuel Roeca
Release
1971
Runtime
1h 46m
Country
Sweden, United States of America
Language
English
Also Known As
Papegojan, Perfekte Rache

Why Cult

Max von Sydow Driven Revenge

See Max von Sydow as the wronged and vengeful Salem, whose return from the asylum sets the stage for a cold-blooded reckoning.

Snowbound Crime Horror

Murder on a wintry farm provides an atmospheric backdrop for the film's blend of crime, horror, and thriller elements.

László Benedek Direction

Directed by László Benedek, the film weaves psychological suspense and violent confrontation with a controlled, brooding pace.

Twisted Family Dynamics

Sibling betrayal and accusations fuel the narrative, as old wounds resurface alongside fresh crimes.

Trailer

Questions from the Vault

What is The Night Visitor about? +

The Night Visitor follows Salem, an institutionalized man who escapes to take revenge on his sister and brother-in-law for their betrayal, set against a backdrop of murder in a remote farming community.

Who directed The Night Visitor? +

The Night Visitor was directed by László Benedek.

How long is The Night Visitor? +

The Night Visitor has a runtime of 106 minutes.

What genre is The Night Visitor? +

The Night Visitor is a crime, horror, and thriller film.