Endless Night – 1971 | 95mins | Thriller | Colour

Plot Synopsis

Sidney Gilliat’s final directorial effort was this gripping psychological thriller adapted from the novel by Agatha Christie. For the greater part of Endless Night the viewer could be forgiven for assuming they were watching a routine Agatha Christie thriller, but in one moment a torrid sex scene shatters any homely illusions. The leisurely build-up is quite promising with an eerie undercurrent but the promise is never fulfilled and from the denouement onwards the story literally flies by to an unfulfilling resolution. Gilliat himself described Endless Night as: “a better film the second time than the first. Because at least the second time you can see why certain things are happening. But when you see it the first time you get the impression that situations or happenings are being created in order to keep the plot going.”

Ambitious young chauffeur Michael (Hywel Bennett), after marrying beautiful and wealthy American heiress Ellie (Hayley Mills), persuades her to have their ‘dream’ home designed by the world-renowned Santonix and built on a plot of land called Gipsy’s Acre on the South Downs. The modern-day technological home proves to be more of a nightmare than pleasure to live in. After taking up residence, their lives take a decided change for the worse when friends, relatives, and neighbours continue to turn up unannounced; a mysterious local soothsayer stalks the home predicting doom and Ellie’s devious friend Greta (Britt Ekland) moves in. Michael buys a small antique shop in the nearby village and for a short while the newlyweds appear blissful until tragedy strikes on summer afternoon.