Bedlam (1946)

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

William Hogarth (suggested by The William Hogarth painting Bedlam Plate #8 "The Rake's Progress")
Val Lewton (screenplay) ...
(more)

Release Date:

10 May 1946 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Thriller

Tagline:

Sensational Secrets of Infamous Mad-house EXPOSED! (1946 one-sheet poster)

Plot:

Nell Bowen, the spirited protege of rich Lord Mortimer, becomes interested in the conditions of notorious St...

Plot Keywords:

Bedlam | Quaker | Asylum | African American Child | Visions Of Hell

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Boris Karloff	...	Master George Sims
Anna Lee	...	Nell Bowen
Billy House	...	Lord Mortimer
Richard Fraser	...	The Stonemason
Glen Vernon	...	The Gilded Boy (as Glenn Vernon)
Ian Wolfe	...	Sidney Long
Jason Robards Sr.	...	Oliver Todd (as Jason Robards)
Leyland Hodgson	...	That Devil Wilkes (as Leland Hodgson)
Joan Newton	...	Dorothea the Dove
Elizabeth Russell	...	Mistress Sims
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Polly Bailey	...	Scrub Woman (uncredited)
John Beck	...	Solomon (uncredited)
Hamilton Camp	...	Pompey (voice) (uncredited)
Robert Clarke	...	Dan the Dog (uncredited)
Ellen Corby	...	Queen of the Artichokes (uncredited)
Frankie Dee	...	Pompey (uncredited)
Bruce Edwards	...	The Warder (uncredited)
Betty Gillette	...	Minor Role (uncredited)
John Goldsworthy	...	Chief Commissioner (uncredited)
Harry Harvey	...	John Gray (uncredited)
Vic Holbrook	...	Tom the Tiger (uncredited)
George Holmes	...	2nd Stonemason (uncredited)
John Ince	...	Judge (uncredited)
Jimmy Jordan	...	3rd Stonemason (uncredited)
Skelton Knaggs	...	Varney (uncredited)
Donna Lee	...	Cockney Girl (uncredited)
Nan Leslie	...	Cockney Girl (uncredited)
James Logan	...	Bailiff (uncredited)
John Meredith	...	1st Maniac (uncredited)
Tommy Noonan	...	1st Stonemason (uncredited)
Frank Pharr	...	2nd Commissioner (uncredited)
Foster H. Phinney	...	Lord Sandwich (uncredited)
Robert Seiter	...	John the Footman (uncredited)
Victor Travers	...	Sims' Friend (uncredited)
Larry Wheat	...	Podge (uncredited)

Directed by
Mark Robson

Writing credits
William Hogarth		(suggested by The William Hogarth painting Bedlam Plate #8 "The Rake's Progress")
Val Lewton		(screenplay) (as Carlos Keith) and
Mark Robson		(screenplay)

Produced by
Jack J. Gross	....	executive producer
Val Lewton	....	producer

Original Music by
Roy Webb

Cinematography by
Nicholas Musuraca		(director of photography)

Film Editing by
Lyle Boyer

Art Direction by
Albert S. D'Agostino
Walter E. Keller

Set Decoration by
Darrell Silvera		(set decorations)

Costume Design by
Edward Stevenson		(gowns)

Makeup Department
Mel Berns	....	makeup artist (uncredited)

Second Unit Director or Assistant Director
Doran Cox	....	assistant director

Art Department
John Sturtevant	....	set designer (uncredited)

Sound Department
Terry Kellum	....	sound
Jean L. Speak	....	sound

Special Effects by
Vernon L. Walker	....	special effects

Visual Effects by
Harold E. Stine	....	transparency projection shots (uncredited)

Music Department
C. Bakaleinikoff	....	musical director
Gil Grau	....	orchestrator (uncredited)
Earl B. Mounce	....	music mixer (uncredited)

Production Companies

• RKO Radio Pictures (presents) (as RKO Radio Pictures, Inc.)

Distributors

• RKO Radio Pictures (1946) (USA) (theatrical) (as An R K O Radio Picture)
• RKO Radio Films (195?) (Netherlands) (theatrical)
• C&C Television Corporation (1955) (USA) (TV) (syndication)
• Image Entertainment (1991) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Image Entertainment (1995) (USA) (video) (laserdisc)
• Odeon Entertainment (2012) (UK) (DVD)
• Turner Home Entertainment (2005) (USA) (DVD)
• Warner Home Video (2008) (USA) (DVD)

Also Known As:

Runtime:

79 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (PCA #11077, Adult Audience) | UK:PG (video rating) (1998) | Australia:G | Finland:K-16 (1986) | Netherlands:18 (re-rating) (1955) (passed with cuts) (original rating: not approved) | UK:PG (tv rating)

Company:

RKO Radio Pictures

Trivia:

In one of the street scenes, a flower seller is heard calling. "Lavender, sweet blooming lavender,/ Six bunches a penny today, /Lavender, sweet blooming lavender,/ Ladies buy it while you may." This is an actual old street cry from London.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: At the fête, the violinists are shown playing with 20th-century bows.

Quotes:

Lord Mortimer:A capital fellow, this Sims, a capital fellow.
Nell Bowen:If you ask me, M'Lord, he's a stench in the nostrils, a sewer of ugliness, and a gutter brimming with slop.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Val Lewton: The Man in the Shadows (2007) (TV)

Not the chiller it was advertised as but still a polished and flowing story

Master George Sims runs the famous mental asylum Bedlam for his own personal amusement – using the inmates for his own ends (such as entertaining powerful guests) even if it means his patients die as a result; although even when they do, it matters naught to Sims or his political peers. However the arrival of Nell Bowen with Lord Mortimer exposes Sims to his first critical voice as she tries to reform the asylum to actual treat the patients rather than abuse them. Although Sims can initially control her by pushing the right political buttons on Mortimer, she continues to strive for change and Sims is forced to take further steps to protect his cruel way of life.

A strange mix of well-written dialogue with some comic touches, a solid story, an interesting debate and chiller; however I think those that are disappointed in the film tend to put to much onus on the latter rather than the former qualities. I agree that the film really does fall flat when it comes to drawing the horror and tension out Nell's imprisonment but there was enough going on to cover for it. The early stages are quite light, with flowing dialogue and some moments of wit that are enjoyable and offer a bit of menace just below the surface where I'd hoped it would gradually be revealed as more. Sadly in the second half this menace didn't come out enough and it wasn't as chilling as I would have liked. Despite this it is still interesting and is a polished film that is very engaging.

The basic story is simple enough and the debate over Sim's methods versus the "Quaker lies" is a nice addition despite it always falling on the side of Nell. The dialogue contains too many "thee's" and "thou's" for its own good but it is still nicely poetic and flows well, adding to the classy feel of the film. With these words the cast mostly stand up well to it. Karloff has fun with the words and enjoys mixing intelligent wit with his usual brand of menace. Lee is good despite being a bit too liberal for her won good, although she gets off better than Fraser, who stumbles across nearly every word he has to say and comes across about as natural as PVC. Hodgson, House and others all give good support but mostly the film is best when Karloff and Lee are on screen together.

Overall not a chiller or horror by any means, although you can see why people expect it to be. However it is still a professional period piece that flows well with the dialogue and most of the actors to produce an enjoyable story that is worth seeing.