Is "The Night of The Hunter" the most underrated film of all time?

Question

It's fantastic, I first watched this film as a kid and even then I knew it was one of the best films around. Bob Mitchum's able to give one of his best performances, and even the children aren't that annoying. It has symbolism, metaphor, it highlights the hypocrisy of society, and it's got one h**l of a spooky song. But you never hear anyone so much as mention it.

Answer 1

well, i wouldnt necessarily call it underrated cos now it is considered a classic by critics and film buffs (such as myself lol). i'd say its just more underexposed, and also it would totally fail to gain an audience now considering the average persons attention span these days. it is hypnotic and robert mitchum is astonishing in it. i loved him after this movie and watched out of the past because of him. it can be called oneo f the most original movies ever made in hollywood, there hasnt been a movie like it since. plus, it has one of the most repellent main characters ever, the fact he is so hypnotic is pretty impressive. i think the reason u dont hear ppl mention it is cos ppl nowadays, especially on Y!A, only watch contemporary movies, and have no time or patience for a black and white film with totally different acting styles and very little traditional action. it takes a film buff to really appreciate a movie like that, not your average movie-goer popcorn muncher

Answer 2

I think of “The Night of the Hunter” as one of the creepiest fairy tales I ever came into contact with (way creepier than any of the Grimms’ ones). Robert Mitchium’s character, his love&hate tattoo, the two siblings’ journey through the river by moonlight, Lillian Gish’s silhouette while she’s waiting for Mitchium in the porch with a rifle in her hands, an AMAZING cinematography and many other details make this movie a truly mesmerizing experience, even to us “modern” viewers.  I was born long after this movie was made, so I didn’t get the chance to watch it when it first came out, but I first saw it as a kid too, and I watched it a few other times after hearing even the harshest  film critics mention it as one of the great masterpieces of the 50s, so I agree with mrsmiley, I wouldn’t say it’s underrated: after all, it made it into the IMDB top 250 which, as unreliable as it sometimes gets, could still be considered as a mirror of the taste of contemporary audiences. Movies like the feverishly anticipated “Twilight” or the “American Pie” series may get most of the audience’s attention today, but they’re going to be forgotten and replaced by something else in ten years or so, while a classic like “The night of the hunter” will always be one of the top titles in any cinephile’s list.