Carol inherits a night club from her weird uncle. She moves into the place, only to find out just how weird her uncle really was. She begins to remember more about her very special relations... Read allCarol inherits a night club from her weird uncle. She moves into the place, only to find out just how weird her uncle really was. She begins to remember more about her very special relationship with her uncle as she battles her memories and her surroundings in her new home.Carol inherits a night club from her weird uncle. She moves into the place, only to find out just how weird her uncle really was. She begins to remember more about her very special relationship with her uncle as she battles her memories and her surroundings in her new home.
- Awards
- 1 win total
- Tom
- (as Nick Love)
- Uncle Fletcher
- (as Sam Schact)
- Mariana
- (as Denise Dummont)
- Lt. Sharpe
- (as James Geallis)
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- Writer
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Featured reviews
Writer/director Chapman breathes sinister life into this creepy abode of a building. It seems to take on a life of its own in between the shadows, macabre lighting and ethereal noises that emanate from nowhere.
The film instantly draws us into a dark world where we are never sure what is exactly real and what is a figment of Leigh's imagination. Like any good psychological thriller, circumstances and events are revealed to us slowly, as we need to know them, and always advancing the plot.
More than anything else, the film sustains a brooding, macabre feel that always keeps us feeling uneasy, which seems to mirror Leigh's character. She is excellent here as a woman trying to come to grips with both her mental illness and a sordid past. The musical score is both eerie, yet powerful, further luring us into the film's creepiness.
The only flaw in the film is the villain, a victim of Leigh's Uncle's sexual perversions. Where the character makes sense from a psychological standpoint, the writing here is definitely over the top, a circumstance which takes away some of the film's credibility. Yet, it is a movie not to be taken so seriously so that this character does any major damage. The overall effect is left intact.
Those who are fans of David Lynch and of movies that create a convincing, yet creepy world of their own, should enjoy Heart of Midnight.
I don't know. Maybe my tastes aren't as exacting as they used to be, but I'm not afraid to say I think this was a damn good film. So there!
Did you know
- TriviaReportedly, Leigh was disappointed with how Heart of Midnight turned out. She had done her customary extensive research for the project: meeting with women who had been abused as children, interviewing psychologists, attending crisis clinics, writing diaries and back-histories in Carol's voice, and likely felt disheartened when she saw the final product - something akin to a psychosexual haunted-house horror.
- GoofsAround the 75 minute mark when Carol is talking to her mother and counselor outside the building, the boom mic can be seen at the top of the screen (UK DVD version)
- Alternate versionsThe Italian and German VHS and TV editions run 1:29:01 at PAL speed; the UK DVD edition runs 1:46:25 at PAL speed, so it's 17 minutes longer. Nevertheless, it's missing a bit during the rape scene: for a few seconds the hardcore cartoon showing on TV is replaced by less rude images. The cartoon is intact in the other shorter editions.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Siskel & Ebert & the Movies: Hollywood's Hidden Stars (1990)
- SoundtracksBaby, What Else Can I Do
Performed by Ethel Waters
Written by Gerald Marks (as G. Marks) & Walter Hirsch (as W. Hirsch)
Published by Mills Music, Inc.
Courtesy of RCA/Bluebird Records
- How long is Heart of Midnight?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Budget
- $5,000,000 (estimated)
- Runtime
- 1h 33m(93 min)
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 1.85 : 1