When I saw this film it looked like a passable drama with a tendency to the soapy side, handled and played austerely by competent personnel.
It was however pointed out to me what a major departure it was for Catholic and Protestant clergy in Germany to co-operate in the way that's shown here, something which would have had remarkable impact on the audience for which it was intended.
NIGHTWATCH also has the interest of being one of the Occupation era German productions - strapped by censorship, war guilt and a lack of resources. This wider context invests the film's incidents with a greater density and makes watching it a complex and rewarding experience.
It appears to be it's director's most substantial work but star Neilsen had an extraordinary long and diverse career - Nazi films, 400 HORSEMEN, TOWN WITHOUT PITY etc.
