Hywel Bennett drifts from job to job and dreams of making it big, when he discovers Gypsy's Acre, a beautiful British country property, that seems to be a world in and of itself, quiet, private. He longs to build a house there. Then, one day while enjoying the landscape and the view, a vision of a dancing lady appears. Hayley Mills, an American heiress, has found this paradise too, while on holiday. Long story short, they fall in love, build their house and live happily ever after. Wait! They don't live happily ever after!? This is based on an Agatha Christie story. Yeah, you see, there's this curse on the property. Things start to happen, A rock is thrown into a glass window. Someone or some thing? doesn't want them there. And, a friend of Hayley's comes to visit, played by Britt Ekland. (In fact three actors in this production were in James Bond films, Britt as a Bond girl in one film, Lois Maxwell was Ms. Moneypenny throughout the Sean Connery and Roger Moore years and Walter Gotell, who was a KGB or Russian agent in a lot of the films.) I read the book years ago, and I think I saw this film years ago too, but upon seeing this again, I was blown away. This was genuinely scary and dark for an Agatha Christie story! Its interpretation and presentation were spot on and delivered some truly chilling and memorable moments. All of the players were excellent in their respective roles. George Sanders adds his very dry characterization to the film as Hayley's attorney. Even if like me, you have read the book and know the ending, I think you won't be disappointed. This movie stands on its own, even without having read the book. A lot of her books had British titles, which were changed for the American market. But this title stayed the same. Agatha really topped herself here in terms of depth and the human psyche. For a midnight movie, watch this "endless night."

I had heard of this film but had not taken the time to watch it for many years. After all it does have one of the great George Sander's final performances(albeit brief and rather tame)to recommend it. I finally sat down and was actually pleasantly surprised and not surprised it is not better known too. A newly married couple move into their newly constructed home called Gypsy something built by a great Greek architect who is dying(unconvincingly played by a Swede I might add). The young man, played rather nicely by young(then) Brit Hywel Bennett, is a poor, job to job fellow who enjoys beautiful things. He meets a young, attractive American, also played nicely by Haley Mills, who turns out to be one of the richest women in the world. The two meet, fall in love, move in to their dream house, and then the girl dies. Why? What happens to her? Is it her family that is concerned of their inheritance? Is it the young man? It is the strange family friend - played with her usual aplomb and sexiness by Britt Ekland? Only sitting through the movie will make me divulge(not really even that I suppose). Endless Night is a bit plodding at times. But - it is strangely watchable even though so little happens AND the ending - for me - could be seen a mile away. There is Bernard Herrmann's haunting score. There is Sidney Gilliat's workmanlike though not astonishing direction. But the acting by a cast of British stalwarts helped me stay focused despite the somewhat muddled script, the unlikely transitions, and the plot holes. The leads are all pretty good, but then you get folks like Madge Ryan(Who's Killing the Great Chefs of Europe), Lois Maxwell - very good here(James Bond's Moneypenny), Peter Bowles(To the Manor Born), and people like Ann Way and Patience Collier who you know you know but don't know what they were in at the moment. Then there is Mr. Sanders. This is generally seen as his second to last film(his last being the bizarre horror film about a frog demon and death-wielding motorcyclists)before killing himself from what he referred to as "boredom." He still looks suave and sounds great despite looking pretty old here. He has really two good scenes and makes the most of what he is given to do. Endless Night is an entertaining little thriller with some selling points despite some obvious weaknesses.

"Endless Night" may not as fun and exciting as other films based on Agatha Christie books, but it is more psychologically complex and artistically inventive than many of them. The emphasis here is not on the twists and the red herrings (although there are certainly enough of them), but on the characters and their relationships. The movie plays out like a novel, taking its time in telling the story, and thanks to fine performances by the cast, especially the two leads, Hywel Bennett and Hayley Mills (who is lovely and charming), the characters feel like real people. Writer-director Sidney Gilliat (who had worked with Alfred Hitchcock earlier in his career, as had of course composer Bernard Herrmann and actor George Sanders) carefully sets up a creepy mood, and gives us some striking shots (especially the "painting coming to life"). Some details near the end get a little muddled (who and why took that photograph, when did the police come into the house, etc.), but the movie works above all as a psychological study of a split personality. *** out of 4.

Well, this definitely wasn't what I initially expected, but nonetheless "Endless Night" is a respectable and slow-brooding mystery thriller from the pen of the legendary Agatha Christie. This is actually one of those films of which the impact mainly comes afterwards, when the subject matter had its time to sink in. It probably won't ever become one of my personal favorite thrillers because the pacing is too slow, the screenplay is overly talkative and there aren't any memorable shock sequences, but you have got to admire director Sidney Gilliat's skills of suspense-building and generating an ominous atmosphere. I primarily wanted to watch "Endless Night" because it reunites the two lead players of the marvelous British shock-picture "Twisted Nerve" (Hywel Bennett and the indescribably ravishing Hayley Mills) and then additionally features no less than Britt Ekland ("The Wicker Man") and George Sanders ("Village of the Damned"). Great British cast, to say the least.Michael Rogers is a poor chauffeur with great ambitions and nearly unrealizable dreams. The building of his dream house on a fantastic piece of landscape suddenly becomes possible when he starts dating the sixth richest girl in the world … without even being aware of it! Obviously Ellie's family and financial counselors heavily protest against her relationship with the undoubtedly greedy young lad, but the couple conquers all relationship tests and stick together. Still, once they are settled on their dreamy hillside, mysterious events begin to occur. Ellie receives visits from an uncanny and crazy cat-lady (who very well may have been the inspiration for the character in "The Simpsons" with the same name) and offers shelter to her childhood nanny Greta even though she clearly doesn't get along with Michael. For a very long time – approximately two thirds of the whole film – you will wonder where Agatha Christie is going with the plot. "Endless Night" only turns into a mystery thriller during the last fifteen minutes. All the foregoing is actually just relationship drama and moody psychological studies. The remotely infamous twist near the end is indeed quasi unpredictable, but also highly implausible in my humble opinion. Obviously I can't write too much without revealing essential key information, but if a man is put to the choice between a beautiful rich girl and a beautiful poor girl … it isn't such a tough decision.