- Film Review
- Reviewed By Robert Sellers
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3 out of 5
Was there ever a star who played sadistic men with as much relish as Boris Karloff? He's given ample room to snarl here as an asylum boss in 18th-century London who interns an innocent woman to stop her from exposing his harsh rule. Intelligently written and acted, with its production design modelled on William Hogarth's engravings, this atmospheric chiller from the Val Lewton stable is let down by Mark Robson's rather pedestrian direction. Despite the agreeable attention paid to historical detail, its talky approach will no doubt turn off fans raised on a diet of slasher fiends like Freddy Kruger and Jason Vorhees.
Plot Summary
Horror starring Boris Karloff and Anna Lee. When the actress friend of a prominent politician threatens to expose the appalling conditions at the notorious 18th-century asylum of St Mary's of Bethlehem - better known as "Bedlam" - the institution's sinister supervisor goes to extreme measures to maintain his control.
Cast and crew
Cast
- Master Sims
- Boris Karloff
- Nell Bowen
- Anna Lee
- Lord Mortimer
- Billy House
- Oliver Todd
- Jason Robards Sr
- Hannay
- Richard Fraser
- The gilded boy
- Glenn Vernon
- Sidney Long
- Ian Wolfe
- John Wilkes
- Leyland Hodgson
- Dorothea the Dove
- Joan Newton
- Queen of the Artichokes
- Ellen Corby
Crew
- Director
- Mark Robson
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