The disreputable genre of the home invasion film seems a nasty recent genre; but probably dates back at least as far as Robert Sherwood' 1935 play 'The Petrified Forest'.
When in 1955 William Wyler's 'The Desperate Hours' returned to the subject, the same year a much cheaper version by the notoriously parsimonious Andrew Stone also hit screens, perfectly exemplifying Stone's device of presenting "'ordinary' people with a sudden, shattering emergency that involves a race against time" as David Thomson put it.
'The Night Holds Terror' cost a fraction of the price of Wyler's film (and it certainly lacks the star power of Humphrey Bogart - who starred in the play - and Fredric March) but doesn't suffer from the comparison since the rough edges resulting from Stone's notorious corner cutting simply adds to the tension propelled by the narration that had already become the director's hallmark.
When in 1955 William Wyler's 'The Desperate Hours' returned to the subject, the same year a much cheaper version by the notoriously parsimonious Andrew Stone also hit screens, perfectly exemplifying Stone's device of presenting "'ordinary' people with a sudden, shattering emergency that involves a race against time" as David Thomson put it.
'The Night Holds Terror' cost a fraction of the price of Wyler's film (and it certainly lacks the star power of Humphrey Bogart - who starred in the play - and Fredric March) but doesn't suffer from the comparison since the rough edges resulting from Stone's notorious corner cutting simply adds to the tension propelled by the narration that had already become the director's hallmark.