Night Moves (1975 film)

This article is about the 1975 film directed by Arthur Penn. For other uses, see Night Moves (disambiguation).
Night Moves
A small seaplane is about to land on water in the background. A paper card, which is the private investigator's license for Harry Moseby, is partially immersed in the water in the foreground. The face of Gene Hackman, who played Harry Moseby, is superposed, as is the text "What private eye Harry Moseby doesn't know about the girl he's looking for .... just might get him killed".
Original theatrical poster
Directed byArthur Penn
Written byAlan Sharp
Produced byRobert M. Sherman
Starring
CinematographyBruce Surtees
Edited byDede Allen
Stephen A. Rotter (co-editor)[1][2]
Music byMichael Small
Production
companies
Hiller Productions, Ltd. – Layton[2]
Distributed byWarner Bros.
Release dates
  • June 11, 1975 (1975-06-11) (New York City)
  • July 2, 1975 (1975-07-02) (Los Angeles)
Running time
99 minutes[2]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Night Moves is a 1975 American neo-noir film[3][4] directed by Arthur Penn, and starring Gene Hackman, Jennifer Warren, Susan Clark, with supporting performances from Melanie Griffith and James Woods. Its plot follows a Los Angeles private investigator who uncovers a series of sinister events while searching for the missing teenage daughter of a former movie actress.

Hackman was nominated for a BAFTA Award for his portrayal of private investigator Harry Moseby. The film has been called "a seminal modern noir work from the 1970s",[5] which refers to its relationship with the film noir tradition of detective films. The original screenplay is by Scottish writer Alan Sharp.

Although Night Moves was not considered particularly successful at the time of its release, it has attracted viewers and significant critical attention following its videotape and DVD releases.[6] In 2010, Manohla Dargis described it as "the great, despairing Night Moves (1975), with Gene Hackman as a private detective who ends up circling the abyss, a no‑exit comment on the post-1968, post-Watergate times."[7]

  1. ^ Rotter was credited as "co-editor"; see "Index to Motion Picture Credits: Night Moves". Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.
  2. ^ a b c "Night Moves". AFI Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
  3. ^ Sanders & Skoble 2008, p. 3.
  4. ^ Schwartz 2005, p. 31.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference DSchwartz was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Slifkin 2004, p. 545.
  7. ^ Dargis, Manohla (October 8, 2010). "Arthur Penn, a Director Attuned to His Country". The New York Times.