Release calendarTop 250 moviesMost popular moviesBrowse movies by genreTop box officeShowtimes & ticketsMovie newsIndia movie spotlight
    What's on TV & streamingTop 250 TV showsMost popular TV showsBrowse TV shows by genreTV news
    What to watchLatest trailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb SpotlightFamily entertainment guideIMDb Podcasts
    EmmysSuperheroes GuideSan Diego Comic-ConSummer Watch GuideBest Of 2025 So FarDisability Pride MonthSTARmeter AwardsAwards CentralFestival CentralAll events
    Born todayMost popular celebsCelebrity news
    Help centerContributor zonePolls
For industry professionals
  • Language
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Watchlist
Sign in
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
Use app
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • FAQ
IMDbPro

The Night Visitor

  • 1971
  • PG
  • 1h 46m
IMDb RATING
6.7/10
2.2K
YOUR RATING
The Night Visitor (1971)
Trailer for The Night Visitor
Play trailer2:26
2 Videos
99+ Photos
WhodunnitCrimeDramaHorrorMysteryThriller

In a Scandinavian insane asylum, murderer Salem sneaks out at night to exact his revenge on those who he deems responsible for his predicament.In a Scandinavian insane asylum, murderer Salem sneaks out at night to exact his revenge on those who he deems responsible for his predicament.In a Scandinavian insane asylum, murderer Salem sneaks out at night to exact his revenge on those who he deems responsible for his predicament.

  • Director
    • Laslo Benedek
  • Writers
    • Guy Elmes
    • Samuel Roeca
  • Stars
    • Max von Sydow
    • Trevor Howard
    • Liv Ullmann
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.7/10
    2.2K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Laslo Benedek
    • Writers
      • Guy Elmes
      • Samuel Roeca
    • Stars
      • Max von Sydow
      • Trevor Howard
      • Liv Ullmann
    • 51User reviews
    • 23Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Videos2

    The Night Visitor
    Trailer 2:26
    The Night Visitor
    The Night Visitor
    Clip 2:42
    The Night Visitor
    The Night Visitor
    Clip 2:42
    The Night Visitor

    Photos116

    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    View Poster
    + 110
    View Poster

    Top cast13

    Edit
    Max von Sydow
    Max von Sydow
    • Salem
    Trevor Howard
    Trevor Howard
    • Inspector
    Liv Ullmann
    Liv Ullmann
    • Ester Jenks
    Per Oscarsson
    Per Oscarsson
    • Dr. Anton Jenks
    Rupert Davies
    Rupert Davies
    • Mr. Clemens
    Andrew Keir
    Andrew Keir
    • Dr. Kemp
    Jim Kennedy
    Jim Kennedy
    • Carl
    Arthur Hewlett
    Arthur Hewlett
    • Pop
    Hanne Borchsenius
    Hanne Borchsenius
    • Emmie
    • (as Hanne Bork)
    Gretchen Franklin
    Gretchen Franklin
    • Mrs. Hansen
    Bjørn Watt-Boolsen
    Bjørn Watt-Boolsen
    • Mr. Torens
    • (as Bjorn Watt-Boolsen)
    Lotte Freddie
    Lotte Freddie
    • Britt Torens
    Erik Kühnau
    Erik Kühnau
    • Police Doctor
    • (as Erik Kuhnau)
    • Director
      • Laslo Benedek
    • Writers
      • Guy Elmes
      • Samuel Roeca
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews51

    6.72.1K
    1
    2
    3
    4
    5
    6
    7
    8
    9
    10

    Featured reviews

    6Leofwine_draca

    Chilly tale of axe murder and madness

    I guess that if Ingmar Bergman had ever made an out-and-out horror film, THE NIGHT VISITOR is what it would have looked like. This obscure USA/Sweden co-production brings together two of Bergman's favourite actors (Max Von Sydow and Liv Ullman) in a tale of madness, desperation, revenge, and sinister murder. It's quite a vicious film even though the on-screen violence is limited and the viewer never sees much of what's actually taking place.

    The film's chilly, snowbound northern setting (Jutland) is as much a character as the cast themselves, and the story certainly has a unique feel to it: slow, stately, very much like an art-house film, but with dark revenge/thriller plotting. I liked it; there's style to spare, and some ingenious situations as we see Von Sydow's character putting the impossible into action.

    The film is also notable for an exemplary cast. Aside from the Swedish luminaries, we get a real old timer as the detective (Trevor Howard) alongside popular Swedish actor Per Oscarsson, and supporting roles for two Hammer star Brits, Rupert Davies and Andrew Keir. THE NIGHT VISITOR certainly isn't for all tastes, but it's an odd film indeed: quiet and yet spellbinding at the same time.
    8Hey_Sweden

    Very effective thriller.

    Max von Sydow plays Salem, wrongly convicted of a murder and sent to stay in an asylum for the criminally insane. As the movie opens, he has successfully pulled off an escape, and he wreaks vengeance upon his hapless family. However, because he is able to actually return to his cell in time, suspicion falls upon his brother in law, Anton (Per Oscarsson), instead. An inspector played by the always solid Trevor Howard must solve these baffling crimes.

    Slasher fans might hear of this one and get their hopes up, due to the violence suggested in certain scenes, but we never see any actual killings. This is more of a straightforward thriller. It overcomes a rather trite story set up to deliver an incredibly engaging yarn; it's what director Laslo Benedek ("The Wild One") and company do with the material that matters. It's filmed on location in Denmark and Sweden, in some mightily forbidding looking country; you can practically feel the cold while you watch. The atmosphere is stark and impressive, helped all the more by an unusual but amazing Henry Mancini score. It's deliberately paced but fascinating, especially when Benedek and screenwriter Guy Elmes (who works from Samuel Roecas' original story) lay out for us the tons of preparations that Salem has to go through in order to pull off each escape from and return to the asylum.

    Von Sydow is typically excellent, as is Liv Ullmann as his sister, Oscarsson as the volatile, panicky Anton, Rupert Davies as a savvy but sickly lawyer, Andrew Keir as the asylums' head doctor, and Arthur Hewlett as the genial old Pop. Watching this, it's easy to root for Von Sydow, especially during the finale where he must "beat the clock", and the tension is undeniable. This intoxicating film sure does keep you on your toes at times. And "The Night Visitor" does end on an irresistible, rather humorous note.

    It could definitely stand to be better known.

    Eight out of 10.
    heedarmy

    Clever thriller

    Atmospherically set in freezing Jutland, this clever revenge drama starts slowly but will grab your interest as Salem's plan unfolds. The acting is good and the film is well-handled by director Laslo Benedek. Worth a viewing.
    8FieCrier

    a killer with a rock-solid alibi; a clever, suspenseful, artfully-done horror movie

    A man is running away from a large brick building surrounded by a high wall. He's running across rocks and snow in his underwear and boots. He sneaks into a farmhouse and steals some odd items, and sneaks into another house where he kills a woman. It's not the last person he'll kill either; he's trying to frame someone, but why - and how is he getting away from the place that establishes his alibi?

    This is a very good movie. As a horror movie, it doesn't have a very high body count, or much gore, and there's no on screen violence - it cuts away from that. Some horror movies benefit from that, some don't; this one doesn't need it. The locations: isolated locations surrounded by snowy fields are very nice to look at. Acting is very good, as is the musical score by Mancini.

    Definitely deserves to be better-known. I'm surprised some critics didn't like it. Some didn't like that the movie gives some things away early on that could have been withheld. I don't agree; not every movie that has secrets needs to save them for a big reveal at the end. Others felt that the characters' motivations weren't established. I can only suppose they weren't listening to the dialog, because that was fully discussed.
    9Fella_shibby

    Fascinating n atmospheric thriller.

    I saw this for the first time recently after reading Coventry's review. If not for Coventry's review, i wudnt have stumbled upon this atmospheric n fascinating film.

    Salem (Max von Sydow), a mental asylum inmate escapes from the asylum in the dead of winter n reaches his family farm, now run by his younger sisters n the husband of the elder sis. Salem kills all the people he believes responsible for his unfair conviction and subsequent confinement. The film has oodles of atmosphere, the frozen locations, the sparsely populated area n the freezing n gushing wind. Salem's escape plan is meticulously shown and viewers will root for his character.

    I think Law Abiding Citizen (one of my fav revenge thriller) borrowed from this film.





    Some may wonder why Salem killed Brit Torrens. Salem's alibi in the case was Brit Torens, a young lover he was with when the farmhand was killed. Unfortunately, Brit did not speak up in court to clear Salem, instead protecting her own virginal reputation at the cost of his freedom.

    More like this

    The Shout
    6.5
    The Shout
    Crowhaven Farm
    6.3
    Crowhaven Farm
    The Possession of Joel Delaney
    5.7
    The Possession of Joel Delaney
    Eye of the Devil
    6.1
    Eye of the Devil
    The Screaming Woman
    6.5
    The Screaming Woman
    Night Visitor
    4.9
    Night Visitor
    The Creeping Flesh
    6.1
    The Creeping Flesh
    The List of Adrian Messenger
    6.8
    The List of Adrian Messenger
    The Third Secret
    6.5
    The Third Secret
    Unman, Wittering and Zigo
    7.0
    Unman, Wittering and Zigo
    The Confessional
    6.3
    The Confessional
    The Mad Doctor
    6.6
    The Mad Doctor

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Despite having several British actors and crew members, this film never got a cinema release in Britain. It had a brief video release in the early 1980s (luridly re-named "Lunatic") but is mainly known in the UK following TV showings and a DVD release (under its proper title) in the 21st century.
    • Goofs
      The police never see the many footprints Salem left in the snow.
    • Quotes

      The Parrot: Salem. Salem, come to supper!

    • Connections
      Featured in Trailer Trauma Part 4: Television Trauma (2017)

    Top picks

    Sign in to rate and Watchlist for personalized recommendations
    Sign in

    FAQ

    • How long is The Night Visitor?
      Powered by Alexa

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 7, 1973 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • Sweden
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Lunatic
    • Filming locations
      • Varberg, Hallands län, Sweden(filmed entirely on location in Sweden)
    • Production companies
      • Hemisphere Pictures
      • Glazier
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 46 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    The Night Visitor (1971)
    Top Gap
    By what name was The Night Visitor (1971) officially released in India in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more accessSign in for more access
    Follow IMDb on social
    Get the IMDb App
    For Android and iOS
    Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • License IMDb Data
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Your Ads Privacy Choices
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2025 by IMDb.com, Inc.