The Mansion of Madness (1973)

The inmates of an insane asylum take over the institution, imprison the doctors and staff, and then put into play their own ideas of how the place should be run.

Director:

Juan López Moctezuma

Writers:

Carlos Illescas, Juan López Moctezuma,

Stars:

Claudio Brook, Arthur Hansel, Ellen Sherman

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Claudio Brook	...	Dr. Maillard / Raoul Fragonard (as Claude Brook)
Arthur Hansel	...	Gaston LeBlanc
Ellen Sherman	...	Eugénie
Martin LaSalle	...	Julien Couvier
David Silva	...	Cult Priest
Mónica Serna	...	Blanche
Max Kerlow	...	Dr. Maillard
Susana Kamini	...	Cult Priestess
Pancho Córdova	...	Pseudo-Marshal (as Francisco Córdova)
Roberto Dumont
Henry West
Jorge Bekris	...	Henri, the Coachman
René Alís
Mario Castillón Bracho
Oscar Saro

Storyline

A mysterious man is sent deep into the forest to investigate the bizarre behavior of the notorious Dr. Tarr. What he stumbles upon is the doctor's torture dungeon, a hellish asylum completely cut off from civilization and presided over by the ultimate madman. Innocent people have been savagely chained, tortured and stuck in glass cages, then forced to take part in gruesome games of ritual slaughter.

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Plot Keywords:

forest | torture | insane asylum | rape | voice over narration | 

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Taglines:

The Newest Edgar Allan Poe Horror Thriller!

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

Mexico

Language:

Spanish English

Release Date:

March 1976 (USA)

Also Known As:

Edgar Allan Poe: Dr. Tarr's Torture Dungeon

Filming Locations:

Desierto de los Leones, Estado de México, Mexico

Company Credits

Production Co:

Producciones Prisma

Technical Specs

Runtime:

99 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Klangfilm)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Despite being a Mexican production and having a mostly Mexican cast and crew, this movie was filmed in English, then dubbed into Spanish for Mexican cinemas. The version released in USA, retitled "Dr. Tarr's Torture Dungeon", is actually the original version (not a dub), but in a cut form.

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Connections

Featured in 42nd Street Forever: Blu-ray Edition (2012)

User Reviews

Strangely fascinating trash!

Dr. Tarr's Torture Dungeon (the more appealing a.k.a of this film) surely is one of the most bizarre films I ever saw. But then again, it qualifies as Mexican exploitation and you never know what to expect from these guys… I would love to summarize the plot a little but that's nearly impossible considering this is an incoherent series of absurdity, sleaze and semi-psychedelic stuff. The closest I can get is describing how the story takes place in a French asylum hidden in the woods, where doctor Tarr and professor Feather feast their most perverted barbarities on the poor and helpless patients…and yet they like it! My personal favorite is a guy – referred to as Mr. Chicken – who lives in a pen, alongside the other poultry. You should see how happy he is!! The screenplay is supposed to be adapted from an Edgar Allen Poe story but, even though I haven't read it, I suspect that the premise is replenished with many elements from the makers' own wicked imagination. As often the case with this type of cheap exploitation films, it features a surprisingly stylish cinematography and many addictive elements. Especially the mesmerizing opening sequence, with its wonderful blaze of colors, immediately draws your attention. The use of silly music is hilarious and you can only feel sympathy for the actor while they're attempting to rattle their exaggeratedly complex dialogues. This is the kind of cinema that normal human beings refer to as crap and complete rubbish. Only the people with a macabre sense of humor love it and regret that there aren't more films like this to find. I, for one, am proud to have it in my cult-collection.