Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Slow
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Graphic
- moody
- surreal
- foreboding
- christmas horror marathon
- late night cult movie viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly recognize the film's moody atmosphere, suspense, and proto-slasher innovation while finding its fractured storytelling and plot coherence uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The central killings, phone calls, and inheritance mystery unfold around Christmas Eve and the holiday season.
The escaped killer, stalking murders, killer point-of-view shots, and isolated house anticipate later slasher films.
The critical reception specifically identifies flashbacks within flashbacks and narration from two characters.
The film's point-of-view shots from the killer's perspective are highlighted as influential precedents for Black Christmas and Halloween.
Films like Night of the Dark Full Moon, and why
Black Christmas
proto-slasher structure, killer point-of-view shots, Christmas setting, and atmospheric mystery
Halloween
holiday horror, isolated house setting, suspenseful stalking, and influential slasher conventions
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
experimental narrative, fractured chronology, surreal atmosphere, and psychological horror
Silent Night, Deadly Night
Christmas-season horror, institutional menace, and cult-film atmosphere
Movie Details
- Director
- Theodore Gershuny
- Release Date
- 1972-11-01
- Runtime
- 85 min
- Rating
- 5.1 / 10 (104)
Cast
- Patrick O'Neal
- James Patterson
- Mary Woronov
- Astrid Heeren
- John Carradine
- Walter Abel
- Fran Stevens
- Walter Klavun
- Philip Bruns
- Staats Cotsworth
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Fandor Amazon Channel, Screambox Amazon Channel, Midnight Pulp, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Bloodstream, Artiflix, Chilling, Cineverse Amazon Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Night of the Dark Full Moon about?
- A Christmas inheritance draws a wary young man into an abandoned asylum-house where an escaped killer revives an old family mystery.
- What is Night of the Dark Full Moon like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Night of the Dark Full Moon as slow, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Night of the Dark Full Moon violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Night of the Dark Full Moon as graphic.
- What did critics think of Night of the Dark Full Moon?
- Critics broadly recognize the film's moody atmosphere, suspense, and proto-slasher innovation while finding its fractured storytelling and plot coherence uneven.
- Which films are like Night of the Dark Full Moon?
- Films with a similar feel include Black Christmas, Halloween, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and Silent Night, Deadly Night.
- How long is Night of the Dark Full Moon?
- Night of the Dark Full Moon runs 85 minutes.
- Where can I watch Night of the Dark Full Moon?
- In United States, Night of the Dark Full Moon streams on Amazon Prime Video, Philo, Fandor Amazon Channel, Screambox Amazon Channel, Midnight Pulp, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Bloodstream, Artiflix, Chilling, Cineverse Amazon Channel.
