Shock Corridor (1963)

Bent on winning a Pulitzer Prize, a journalist commits himself to a mental institution to solve a strange and unclear murder.

Director:

Samuel Fuller

Writer:

Samuel Fuller

Stars:

Peter Breck, Constance Towers, Gene Evans

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 2 wins & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Peter Breck	...	Johnny Barrett
Constance Towers	...	Cathy
Gene Evans	...	Boden
James Best	...	Stuart
Hari Rhodes	...	Trent
Larry Tucker	...	Pagliacci
Paul Dubov	...	Dr. J.L. Menkin
Chuck Roberson	...	Wilkes
Neyle Morrow	...	Psycho
John Matthews	...	Dr. L.G. Cristo
Bill Zuckert	...	'Swanee' Swanson (as William Zuckert)
John Craig	...	Lloyd
Philip Ahn	...	Dr. Fong
Frank Gerstle	...	Lt. Kane
Rachel Romen	...	Singing Nympho

Storyline

Johnny Barrett, an ambitious journalist, is determined to win a Pulitzer Prize by solving a murder committed in a lunatic asylum and witnessed only by three inmates, from whom the police have been unable to extract the information. With the connivance of a psychiatrist, and the reluctant help of his girlfriend, he succeeds in having himself declared insane and sent to the asylum. There he slowly tracks down and interviews the witnesses - but things are stranger than they seem ...

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Plot Keywords:

psychiatrist | mental institution | undercover | mental patient | faked insanity | 

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Taglines:

...Where sex steps out of its strait-jacket!

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Genres:

Drama | Mystery

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 June 1964 (Italy)

Also Known As:

Straightjacket

Filming Locations:

Kotoku-in, Kamakura, Kanagawa, Japan

Company Credits

Production Co:

Allied Artists Pictures, F&F Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

101 min

Sound Mix:

Mono (Ryder Sound Services)

Color:

Black and White Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Samuel Fuller, the film was shot in 10 days, on one set, with no exteriors.

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Goofs

When talking to the police near the beginning of the movie, when shot from the back, Cathy's coat collar is up, but when we see her from the front, her collar is down.

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Quotes

Johnny Barrett: [interior monologue] Right about now is when he's supposed to ask me if I hear voices...
Dr. L.G. Cristo: Do you hear voices, John?

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Crazy Credits

The quote "Whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad". Euripides 425 B.C." appears at the beginning and end.

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Connections

Referenced in The Best of Film Noir (1999)

User Reviews

One Strange Movie

Shock Corridor is one of Samuel Fuller's wildest works, a deeply personal examination of insanity by the premier exponant of 50's and 60's Pulp Cinema. I prefer "The Naked Kiss", but "Shock Corridor" certainly stands as a unique and memorable work. It is silly, no downright ludicrous at times, as seen today, but this must have been strong stuff when it came out in 1963. It boldly takes on such topics as incest, racism and cold war paranoia. Not sensitively, mind you, yet quite boldly!

Every scene in this movie seems to be played at fever pitch, and I have to say I believe its been over-rated critically, due to the auteur theory run amok, but I do admire Fuller's gutsiness and directorial skill. If only his skills as a scenarist and dialogue writer were commensurate! He did, however, certainly know how to pull an intense performance out of an actor. Breck and Towers are rather ridiculously intense at times, as a matter of fact, though forgivably so, as they are instruments of their director and express his style perfectly. Hari Rhodes, who people of my generation may remember from the tv series, "Daktari", gives a terrific supporting performance, as does the memorable Larry Tucker, who later became a Hollywood screenwriter and producer.