Night Must Fall

In the woods of a Welsh suburb, a man commits an axe murder and disposes of his female victim's body and the axe in a lake. The man, later shown to be a hotel bellboy named Danny (Albert Finney), is summoned to the home of Mrs. Bramson (Mona Washbourne), a wealthy widow, whose maid, Dora (Sheila Hancock), is pregnant by him. Having charmed Mrs. Bramson, he is soon living in her house and pretends to be her son, while redecorating a room and assuming butler duties. He also woos Olivia (Susan Hampshire), Mrs. Bramson's daughter. Alone in his room, he looks at a hatbox, which contains the unseen head of his victim. Meanwhile, the police uncover the headless body and the axe in the lake, which is bordering the property. They question Danny about the victim, who he infers she was a prostitute who frequented the hotel. Dora discovers Danny and Olivia's relationship and rejects both of them. He begins to play odd games with Mrs. Bramson, and Olivia flees the house out of fear. Frustrated by Mrs. Bramson growing weary of a game of chase, Danny hacks her to death. Olivia returns, sees the carnage, gets in her car to leave but returns to phone the police. She finds Danny bathing and informs him that the police are soon to arrive. As she stands guard on the stairs, he huddles in the bathroom, withdrawn into his madness.