The Night Holds Terror (1955)

Because of its similarity to the better-known The Desperate Hours, The Night Holds Terror is hardly ever discussed and barely ever seen. Yet while not a masterpiece, Terror is a surprisingly effective thriller. Working in his familiar semi-documentary style (complete with narration, which is of varying quality and usefulness and may prove irritating to some viewers), director and writer Andrew L. Stone creates a fairly low-key film that is nevertheless harrowing and tension-filled -- a difficult combination, but one which he pulls off with only a few hitches along the way. Filming for the most part on locations rather than studio sets (with even most of the interior seeming to be "authentic"), Terror has a definite flavor of its own -- that of the dream of safe suburbia turning into a nightmare. While the screenplay follows the dictates of the "family held hostage" genre, with little in its plot that is surprising, Stone still manages to find ways to keep the audience guessing and on its toes. Perhaps the best sequence, which owes a great deal for its effectiveness to editor Virginia Stone, is the sequence in which the police race to trace the phone call from the villains. The men turn in solid performances, with John Cassavetes and Vince Edwards especially menacing, but it is Hildy Parks' sensational turn as the wife that deserves the biggest round of applause. ~ Craig Butler, All Movie Guide