A nursery rhyme becomes nightmare fuel in 11 perfect minutes of animated terror.
The people of a town are condemned to die one by one by a mysterious stranger who erects a gallows in the town square.
Writing
Maurice Ogden's poem adapted with brutal narrative precision.
Sound
Bernardi's narration haunts long after credits.
Director
Paul Julian
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Released during Cold War paranoia, the film was widely interpreted as anti-McCarthyism allegory — the Hangman as demagogue, citizens too afraid to name the threat.
Paul Julian's background in Warner Bros. animation brings unexpected Looney Tunes DNA to horror; the exaggerated silhouettes were revolutionary for serious animated storytelling.
US
