Marlon Brando's sole horror movie vehicle is a disturbing, eerie and underrated affair that deserves more praise. Intended as a prequel of sorts to Henry James' "The Turn of the Screw", it is often said to be a follow-up film to Jack Clayton's mesmerizing adaptation of the latter, "The Innocents". Thus, people wanting to see "The Innocents" all over again are bound to be disappointed. For starters, "The Nightcomers" is not even a ghost story to begin with, and can be described as being more of a dark drama with horror overtones, with the underlying theme of sexual-repression being one of the few things the two films share. Although Miles and Flora kill the two so they can at least be together, even if after death, the matter is not dealt in a supernatural way at all. In fact, considering how there are no ghostly manifestations of their dead parents leaves the audience to believe (well, at least those unfamiliar with either James' or Clayton's work) that they were simply insane, in a way more akin to Carlos Henrique Taboada's "Veneno para las Hadas". The final scenes gives a sense of hoplesness, rather than the creepy-but-macabre tone some might expect. As it is often said, Brando's performance as Peter Quint is brilliant, and should be compared to his similar work in "Last Tango in Paris" the following year. In fact, I wonder if Bertolucci ever saw this film before casting Brando as Paul in "Last Tango...". In this one, he manages to convey sympathy and melancholy for his rather brute and vicious character. Stephanie Beacham holds up extremely well against Brando, and they a strangely effective chemistry between them. Thora Hird is delightfully annoying as intended, and the younger actors who play Miles and Flora are quite convincing as well for their young age, and come across as being quite creepy. Tame though they are, the scenes where the two start imitating Quint and Jessell are quite disturbing to say the least. The film also benefits heavily from a bittersweet sense of humor and witty one-liners, that thankfully does not ruin the omnipresent sense of dread and sexual frustration, only enhance it. "The Nightcomers" has been often criticized for being dullishly directed, which surprises me since the whole thing was anything but dull in my view. Surely, some scenes go on for a bit too long, but it's not like they ruin the film. Winner goes for a more naturalistic approach as opposed to Clayton's more nightmarish, otherworldly take, and us such, the film is a real marvel to look at. Winner makes perfect use of the locations at the British countryside, landing a lot to the thick, brooding atmosphere. The musical score, though not particularly memorable, fits perfectly with it's beautiful imagery. Overall, while not a perfect film, "The Nightcomers" has plenty to offer to the open-minded. Just do not expect anything close to "The Innocents", or Winner's later, more "hardcore" horror entry "The Sentinel". 9/10
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