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Nightkill

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Nightkill
Directed byTed Post
Written byJoan Andre
Story byJohn Case
Produced by
  • David Gil
  • Richard Hellman
Starring
CinematographyAnthony B. Richmond
Edited by
  • Gary Griffin
  • Patrick McMahon
Music byGünther Fischer
Production
company
Cine Artists GMBH[1]
Distributed byAvco Embassy Pictures[2][3]
Release date
  • December 18, 1980 (1980-12-18) (U.S.)
Running time
97 minutes
Countries
  • United States[3]
  • West Germany[4]
LanguageEnglish
Budget$4 million[1]

Nightkill is a 1980 psychological thriller film directed by Ted Post, and starring Jaclyn Smith, Mike Connors, James Franciscus, Robert Mitchum, Fritz Weaver, and Sybil Danning.[5] It follows the wife of a wealthy but cruel Phoenix, Arizona industrialist, who finds herself attempting to cover up his murder after her lover poisons him to death.

The film was produced by the German production company Cine Artists GMBH, in association with American distributor Avco Embassy Pictures. It was filmed on location in Arizona in the spring of 1980, with additional shooting taking place in Berlin. The film marked Jaclyn Smith's first major film role following her lead on the popular television series Charlie's Angels. Mitchum's role is touted in Nightkill's promotion and credits, though his role in the is minor with minimal screentime.[6]

Avco Embassy intended to release Nightkill theatrically in the fall of 1980, but its theatrical release never culminated. Instead, it was released in the United States on television as an NBC Movie of the Week in December 1980. Smith, who met the film's cinematographer, Anthony B. Richmond, while shooting the project, married him the following year. Some critics have cited the film as an example of the neo-noir genre.[7]

Plot

Unhappily married to unscrupulous Arizona businessman Wendell Atwell, the beautiful Katherine has been carrying on behind his back with Steve Fulton, his assistant. Knowing that a million dollars in cash has been stashed by Wendell in an airport locker, Steve plots behind his lover's back to poison her husband, then impersonate Wendell on a flight to Washington, D.C. to make it appear he is still alive.

When police detective, Lt. Donner, turns up asking questions, claiming Wendell never turned up in Washington for a scheduled business appointment, Kathy panics and decides to move the body. But when she opens the freezer, instead of finding Wendell's corpse inside it, she finds Steve's. Kathy is constantly questioned by Lt. Donner. Later one evening, Kathy goes to take a shower while Lt. Donner fakes a phone call, just to set the possible murder of Kathy in motion. Lt. Donner shuts off the main water to the shower, with Kathy inside the shower wondering how the water stopped and now the steam turning on, Kathy is trapped inside the shower as Lt. Donner tied the doors shut. Once unconscious in the shower, Kathy's body is moved by Lt. Donner to the bathroom floor. As Lt. Donner takes the money and flees, Kathy phones for help.

Cast

Production

Casting

Jaclyn Smith and Robert Mitchum's casting in the film was announced in February 1980.[1] The film marked Smith's first major feature role outside her leading role on the television series Charlie's Angels.[9]

Filming

The film was originally planned to be shot in Texas,[1] but principal photography instead took place Phoenix, Arizona, beginning in April 1980.[10][11] Its production budget was estimated at $4 million.[1] A private residence on Camelback Mountain was used as a central filming location,[12] with additional footage shot at the Phoenix Zoo.[10] Mitchum was scheduled to shoot his part in the film over a period of ten days.[10]

The production was funded by the German company Cine Artists GMBH, and featured a mainly British crew.[4] Some interior sequences were filmed in Berlin.[13] While shooting the film, Smith began a relationship with cinematographer Anthony B. Richmond, whom she married the following year.[14]

Release

Nightkill was produced by Cine Artists GMBH in association with distributor Avco Embassy Pictures,[1] who intended it for theatrical release in the fall of 1980.[2][15] However, on December 9, 1980, it was reported that Avco Embassy had instead sold the film's rights for television broadcast on NBC.[2] It was released in the United States two weeks later, airing on NBC as the Movie of the Week on December 18, 1980.[16]

Critical response

Assessing the film in a retrospective review for its Blu-ray release, Michael Barrett of PopMatters noted stylistic elements of film noir in Nightkill, summarizing: "This deceptively marketed film is no masterpiece, yet some may appreciate its arid atmosphere of downbeat nightmare."[7] Ian Jane of DVD Talk wrote: "Nightkill is by no means a great movie but it has its interesting elements, most of which stem around the cast. If the story is a bit predictable, it is at least reasonably well paced and occasionally tense enough to keep us watching."[17]

Home media

A pre-certification videocasette of the film was released in the United Kingdom by Vipco in 1981.[18]

Kino Lorber released the film on DVD and Blu-ray in 2017.[19]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f "Film 'Nightkill' cast with Mitchum, Smith". The Times. February 24, 1980. p. 21-F – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ a b c "NBC purchases rights to broadcast 'Nightkill'". The Kansas City Star. December 9, 1980. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b "Nightkill (1980)". British Film Institute. Archived from the original on June 18, 2023.
  4. ^ a b Rose, Peter (April 20, 1980). "Jaclyn Smith: Heads turn as actress films in the Valley". The Arizona Republic. p. G1 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Nightkill". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 21, 2013.
  6. ^ "Nightkill". AllMovie. Retrieved June 18, 2023.
  7. ^ a b Barrett, Michael (October 24, 2017). "Desert Noir: After 'Charlie's Angels', Jaclyn Smith Makes a 'Nightkill' with Robert Mitchum". PopMatters. Archived from the original on June 18, 2023.
  8. ^ "Scrimm, Angus". Encyclopedia.com. Cengage. Archived from the original on June 18, 2023.
  9. ^ Mann, Roderick (October 9, 1980). "Jaclyn Smith Gets the Clad Hand". Los Angeles Times. p. 6 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b c Maza, Micahel (March 23, 1980). "Movie men buzz about town". The Arizona Republic. p. F1 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Mitchum in 'Nightkill'". The Kansas City Star. March 19, 1980. p. 19 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Patterson, Ann (April 6, 1980). "Three-stop home tour: From unusual to elegant". The Arizona Republic – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Production Ahead". The Spokane Chronicle. May 2, 1980. p. 45 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Jaclyn Smith weds cinematographer". Star-Gazette. August 6, 1981. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ Smith, Stacy Jenel (July 27, 1980). "'Casino' scheduling mystery to Connors". Kenosha Sunday News. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ "Movies on TV". The Pittsburgh Press. December 14, 1980. p. 178 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ Jane, Ian (November 2, 2017). "Nightkill". DVD Talk. Archived from the original on June 18, 2023.
  18. ^ Nightkill (VHS). Vipco. 1981. VIP017.
  19. ^ Hartman, Matthew (November 21, 2017). "Nightkill Blu-ray Review". High-Def Digest. Archived from the original on June 18, 2023.
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