The Seventh Victim

1943

Drama / Horror / Mystery

8
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Certified Fresh 95% · 22 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 63% · 1K ratings
IMDb Rating 6.7/10 10 8669 8.7K

new york city paranoia satanism punishment film noir murder

Director

Mark Robson Photo
Mark Robson

Top cast

Wheaton Chambers Photo
Wheaton Chambers as Missing Girl's Father
Tom Conway Photo
Tom Conway as Dr. Louis Judd
Mary Halsey Photo
Mary Halsey as Minor Role
Kim Hunter Photo
Kim Hunter as Mary Gibson
720p.BLU 1080p.BLU
652.86 MB
1280*934
English 2.0
NR
23.976 fps
1 hr 11 min
Seeds 2
1.18 GB
1480*1080
English 2.0
NR
23.976 fps
1 hr 11 min
Seeds 10

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by scootmandutoo 6 / 10

Interesting, though hardly brilliant

What "The 7th Victim" has going for it is its uniqueness. It certainly is unlike any film from that era that I remember seeing.This is one of those films that it helps to know nothing about before viewing. To read any sort of capsule about the flick would definitely take away from the enjoyment of the film.Having said that, I am not totally satisfied with the payoffs the movie provides. There are too many gaps in logic, combined with a bit too much moralizing. Some people find themselves in situations in this film that just simply seem to lack any credibility.For some fascinating sequences (most notably, one that takes place in a shower and seems to have been seen by Alfred Hitchcock) this film is definitely worth a look-see.For me, the individual elements of the film was far more interesting than the sum of its parts.
Reviewed by AAdaSC 7 / 10

Have a drink

Schoolgirl Kim Hunter (Mary) is called to the office of the Headmistress Ottola Nesmith and told that she can no longer stay on as a pupil as her sister Jean Brooks (Jacqueline) has stopped paying her fees. More than that, Brooks seems to have gone missing. So, Hunter goes off to find her. But Brooks isn't so easy to locate.This film leaves you with scenes stuck in your mind, so it's good from that perspective. It is also well shot with an eerie atmosphere. Scenes that stand out include the sequence with Hunter and a detective exploring an office at night and the subsequent spooky train ride, a shower scene that will make you think of "Psycho" (1960) and pretty much every scene with Brooks. Fancy a drink? – no thanks but the pressure is on. And how about that ending? Wow, pretty bleak stuff. Especially coming after what had me cringing as we watched God and the Bible being used as a tool to counter Satan and his ways in an extremely simplistic way.Amo, Amas, Amat, Amamus, Amatis, Amant – remember your Latin from school? The 'ablative absolute' and the 'ut' clause (use the subjunctive). Quamquam. This film also throws in some Latin and I'm glad to hear it. It takes the viewer back to a time sadly long gone as we hear schoolgirls reciting the verb 'Amo' – to love. The day will come when a generation will watch this film and not understand what language it is.The cast are OK with Jean Brooks standing out. Her look suggests she is leader of the occult movement rather than a victim of it. And all of her scenes are quality – some genuinely scary, and all unworldly because of her appearance. That ending with the neighbour comes as a shock and leaves an eerie memory that will have you thinking about how we view life. It's an interesting film…and sad.
Reviewed by hitchcockthelegend 8 / 10

If I prefer to believe in satanic majesty and power, who can deny me?

The Seventh Victim is directed by Mark Robson and written by DeWitt Bodeen and Charles O'Neal. It stars Tom Conway, Jean Brooks, Isabel Jewell and Kim Hunter. Music is scored by Roy Webb and cinematography by Nicholas Musuraca.When she is told her older sister Jacqueline has vanished, Mary Gibson is forced to leave her private school and travel to New York City to hopefully find her. Obtaining help from her sister's husband, Gregory, and the suspicious help of psychiatrist, Dr. Louis Judd, Mary finds that the deeper she goes the more dangerous the situation becomes, it appears that Jacqueline has got herself involved with something very sinister indeed.He calleth all his children by their name. Coming as it does from producer Val Lewton, one shouldn't be surprised that The Seventh Victim is a hauntingly poetic creeper of a movie, no shocks or out and out horror here, just a genuine sense of dread and a pervading sense of doom. When delving a bit further into the making of the picture it becomes apparent that an original cut of the piece was considerably longer, this explains a lot to me as the film, as good as it is in its 71 minute form, is not fully formed and at times not the easiest to fully understand. It would seem that although originally intended as a longer mainstream picture, a difference of opinion between Lewton and the studio (thought to be about the hiring of first time director Mark Robson) meant it was cut to a B movie standard.The Palladists.What remains, though, isn't at all bad, in fact it's unique. Robson's direction (obviously guided by Lewton) is perfectly sedate and in keeping with the mood of the piece, and between them they have conjured up some most unforgettable scenes and imagery. One particular shower scene lingers long after the credits roll, the perfect use of a silhouette probably had a certain Alfred Hitchcock taking notes, whilst the ending is quite simply a piece of bleak and unforgettable cinema. Musuraca is the key ingredient, though, the ace cinematographer is all about the shadows, blending noir with Gothic to create atmospheric paranoia. Satanism in Greenwich Village, suicide, psychological discord and urban dread, all potent little threads dangled into the slow burn pot. But ultimately it's the mood of the picture that gets you, unease and the murky mystery ensuring you are hooked throughout. 7.5/10
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