Night World, directed by Hobart Henley, is a compact look at a single night’s happenings that will alter many lives. This pre-Code nugget presents an ensemble cast headed by Lew Ayers, Mae Clarke, and Boris Karloff (before Frankenstein’s monster consumed his image) as they navigate the perilous New York night life. Released by Universal Pictures just ahead of Best Picture winner Grand Hotel (1932), this 58-minute gem has finally made its way to home video via Kino Lorber’s new HD Blu-ray presentation.
Buy Night WorldIt’s a cold winter night but Happy’s Nightclub is hot with entertainment, booze, and plenty of drama. There’s leggy dance girls, gangsters, gamblers, adulterers, ladies of the night, and ordinary Joes, all in varying states of imbibition and excitement. Club owner/racketeer “Happy” MacDonald (Karloff) is being two-timed by his wife and cheated by a bootlegger. Gambler Ed Powell (George Raft) is overly pushy in his pursuit of chorus girl Ruth Taylor (Clarke). Then, there’s the young Micheal Rand (Ayers), deeply troubled after witnessing his father’s death at hands of the estranged mother (Hedda Hopper). Meanwhile just outside the club’s entrance, doorman Tim Washington (Clarence Muse) frets about his hospitalized wife to his policeman buddy (Robert Emmett O’Conner) as he makes his nightly rounds. It all seems like another wild night at Happy’s until their lives tragically collide sending their night worlds spinning topsy-turvy.
Night World’s ensemble cast, from top-billed stars to those in uncredited bit parts, turn in solid performances throughout. Aside from the aforementioned cast members, there’s Jack Larue, Louise Beavers, Bert Roach, and Robert Livingstone to name but few more of the familiar faces known to fans of early Hollywood and its B pictures, where many of those actors play more prominent roles. Seeing Karloff as a rather dapper club owner, Clarke sans grapefruit to the face, and Livingston for a split second in a tux rather than a cowboy hat, is quite amusing. Muse’s performance and role in particular stands out as it finds him full of humor and philosophical thoughts without playing to the stereotypes of the time.
While behind the camera, director Henley and cinematographer Merritt B. Gerstad (A Night at the Opera) set up some great shots that employ light and shadow as well as creative camera angles. A good example is the lighting used to frame Karloff’s menacing scowl in a key dark moment in the picture. The clever camera work is highlighted during the sole dance number choreographed by the legendary Busby Berkeley. Besides the usual overhead spinning shots and close-ups, they mischievously set the camera on the floor so we get a naughty POV look as one patron “ties his shoe” for a better look at those gams.
The Kino Lorber Blu-ray features two separate feature length audio commentary tracks. The first is from film historian Jeremy Arnold. The other is by novelist/critic Tim Lucas with help from film expert Joe Busam, who chimes in as needed, is especially fun, as he has an expansive knowledge of and deep love for Universal Monsters and those old horror films in general. Both commentary tracks are informative as they highlight many behind-the-scenes facts and provide bios of the many players that grace the Night World through its brisk 58-minute runtime.
