The Devil Strikes at Night (1957)
Hamburg, Germany, 1944, during World War II. A serial killer terrorizes the city. When it seems clear that the local police are unable to catch him, forces as dark and terrible as the criminal himself become involved in the case.
- Robert Siodmak
- Walter Boos
- Oskar Wintergerst
- Werner Jörg Lüddecke
- Will Berthold
Rating: 6.9/10 by 29 users
Alternative Title:
La Nuit quand le diable venait - FR
De noche, cuando vino el diablo - AR
O Diabo Ataca à Noite - BR
Djævelen kom om natten - DK
Piru tuli yöllä - FI
Ordine segreto del III Reich - IT
Djevelen kom om natten - NO
Nocą, kiedy przychodzi diabeł - PL
Ночь, когда приходил дьявол - RU
Djävulen kom om natten - SE
At Night, When the Devil Came - DE
The Devil Came at Night - DE
Country:
Germany
Language:
Deutsch
Runtime: 01 hour 40 minutes
Budget: $0
Revenue: $0
Plot Keyword: world war ii, serial killer, hamburg, germany, nazism, 1940s, based on magazine, newspaper or article
Serial Killer - Nazis - Same Thing! Nachts, wenn der Teufel kam is directed by Robert Siodmak and written by Will Berthold (article) and Werner Jörg Lüddecke. It stars Claus Holm, Annemarie Düringer, Mario Adorf, Hannes Messemer, Carl Lange and Werner Peters. Music is by Siegfried Franz and cinematography by Georg Krause. A serial killer is terrorising Hamburg, Germany, during World War II. When the local police struggle to catch him, the Gestapo are brought in to crack the case. The basis for the story is that of real life serial killer Bruno Lüdke, here played by Adorf. Yet this is only a side-bar to the actuality of Siodmak's film, for it's a clinical deconstruction of Nazi Germany at the time, a look at the final throes of that regime. It shows how the corrupt powers would do anything to not make their government look bad, with orders even coming from Adolf himself! It's all very fascinating and potent, and well performed. There's some nice visual touches via the night sequences, though you reasonably expect to have more from Siodmak, a fine purveyor of expressionism and noir chiaroscuro. There's some contrivances and a couple of badly staged action sequences, but this remains a tough political drama with mystery shadings. 8/10
