The Night of the Hunter
Acceptable with guidance. Age: 18+. A Catholic review of this movie for parents.
Our review
Two children, John and Pearl, are chased by a bad man who pretends to be a preacher. He wants money their father hid. A brave old woman named Rachel, who truly loves God, takes them in and protects them. This movie is very scary and is for grown-ups. This is a film about a wolf in sheep's clothing, and it opens with that very warning from Scripture. The false preacher quotes the Bible to kill and steal. Rachel Cooper reads the same Bible to shelter children, and she wins. The menace toward children is strong and steady, so keep it for adults and prepared older teens watching with a parent.
For parents
For adults. Simcha Fisher in the National Catholic Register suggests over 10, but Lumen holds it higher: a man murders his wife, hunts two small children and holds a knife to a boy's throat. Little is shown, yet the dread is constant. The 1955 Legion of Decency gave it a B over its treatment of marriage. The point to correct is the preacher's teaching that the marriage bed is shameful, which crushes his bride. That is his lie. The film knows it is a lie, but a teen should hear a parent say it plainly. Also talk about the townspeople who adore him and later turn into a mob. Ask: how can someone quote Scripture and still be false? How does Rachel tell the difference? What does she do with the Bible that he does not?