Disturbed (1990)

10 years ago the perverse Dr. Russell couldn't resist the beauty of a young patient in his mental clinic and raped her one night. When she plunged herself from the roof shortly after, he ... See full summary »

Director:

Charles Winkler

Writers:

Emerson Bixby (screenplay), Emerson Bixby (story),

Stars:

Malcolm McDowell, Geoffrey Lewis, Priscilla Pointer

Cast

Credited cast:
Malcolm McDowell	...	Dr. Derrick Russell
Geoffrey Lewis	...	Michael Kahn
Priscilla Pointer	...	Nurse Francine
Pamela Gidley	...	Sandy Ramirez
Irwin Keyes	...	Pat Tuel
Clint Howard	...	Brian
Peter Murnik	...	Brad
Carrie Lynn	...	Tina
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Barbara Babbin	...	Visitor
Emerson Bixby	...	Mental Patient
Dean Cameron	...	Singing Telegram Man
Lydell M. Cheshier	...	Lidell
B. Lee Drew	...	Officer Bill Wyman
Lee Drew	...	Officer Bill
Sandra Ganzer	...	Young Sandy

Storyline

10 years ago the perverse Dr. Russell couldn't resist the beauty of a young patient in his mental clinic and raped her one night. When she plunged herself from the roof shortly after, he described it as consequence of her heavy depressions. Now the same urge overcomes him with his new patient Sandy. He doesn't know that she's the daughter of his previous victim and that she's come for revenge.

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Plot Keywords:

patient | bound and gagged | injection | murder | mental hospital | 

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Taglines:

The Doctor is in... but out of his mind!

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

16 November 1990 (USA)

Also Known As:

Anoihtos logariasmos

Filming Locations:

Colorado, USA

Company Credits

Technical Specs

Runtime:

96 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Goofs

At the very end of the film, after Dr. Russell screams in his padded cell, you can here the director say "cut."

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Crazy Credits

After the end credits is a scene of Dr. Russell going crazy in his padded cell.

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Connections

References A Clockwork Orange (1971)

User Reviews

extraordinary film, Scorsese take note!

I first saw this film a few years ago when I was viewing Dom d Louise's early works, and became interested in other actors who had once had their names written in the stars, but were now little more than B-vehicle and up-staged stars of bad sit-coms.

Malcolm, of course, was one of the first to make the leap from a rather desperate film career to mediocre sit-com, and has since been followed by such lights as: Cybil Shepherd (Cybil), Joan Cusak (Joan), Bette Midler (Bette), and Courtney Cox (Friends).

I hadn't realised this was his first film sporting the future-villain hair-style, but this only adds to the value of my ex-rental copy of the film.

Much has been said of the camera work in this film, as a sort of a chart of a man's descent into madness, but few people mention the shot that, I feel, is the key to the entire film. When one of the patients exposes himself to a nurse, we get a - filmically - rare penis POV. I have never seen such a thing attempted in a movie, and if you add this to the tremendous whirling tracking-shots, you end up with a film that I think proves beyond doubt that Scorsese owes more to Winkler than he dares reveal.

Brilliant, and standing up to multiple viewings, I have seen it several times, and truly covet my copy of this obscure American classic.

BTW, watch out for the genuinely "disturbing" scene, after the closing credits, where Malcolm "interferes" with the camera, raising all sorts of philosophical questions on the nature of madness, the truth of film, and Crossing The Line (on several levels). Once again, Brilliant!