The read
Critics rate it 22 points higher than audiences do. It runs a compact 1h 16m.
Synopsis
London, 1761. St. Mary's of Bethlehem, a sinister madhouse, is visited by wealthy people who enjoy watching the patients confined there as if they were caged animals. Nell Bowen, one of the visitors, is horrified by the deplorable living conditions of the unfortunate inhabitants of this godforsaken place, better known as Bedlam.
Ratings
IMDb6.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes90%
Critics rate it 22 points higher than audiences do.
85 audience votes
Key crew
- Mark RobsonDirector
- Mark RobsonScreenplay
- Val LewtonScreenplay
- Roy WebbOriginal Music Composer
Cast
- Boris KarloffGeorge Sims
- Anna LeeNell Bowen
- Billy HouseLord Mortimer
- Richard FraserThe Stonemason
- Glen VernonThe Gilded Boy
- Ian WolfeSidney Long
- Jason Robards Sr.Oliver Todd
- Leyland Hodgson'That Devil' Wilkes
- Joan NewtonDorothea the Dove
- Elizabeth RussellMistress Sims
- Larry WheatPodge (uncredited)
- Skelton KnaggsVarney (uncredited)
Stills
Themes
london, englandinsane asylumclass differencesmental illness18th centurycorrupt systemquakerismmental health caresocial prejudice