Tales That Witness Madness (1973)

A psychiatrist tells stories of four special cases to a colleague.

Director:

Freddie Francis

Writer:

Jennifer Jayne (original screenplay) (as Jay Fairbank)

Stars:

Jack Hawkins, Donald Pleasence, Georgia Brown

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Jack Hawkins	...	Nicholas (segment "Clinic Link Episodes")
Donald Pleasence	...	Tremayne (segment "Clinic Link Episodes")
Georgia Brown	...	Fay (segment "Mr. Tiger")
Donald Houston	...	Sam (segment "Mr. Tiger")
Russell Lewis	...	Paul (segment "Mr. Tiger")
David Wood	...	Tutor (segment "Mr. Tiger")
Suzy Kendall	...	Ann Beatrice (segment "Penny Farthing")
Peter McEnery	...	Timothy (segment "Penny Farthing")
Neil Kennedy	...	1st Removal Man (segment "Penny Farthing")
Richard Connaught	...	2nd Removal Man (segment "Penny Farthing")
Beth Morris	...	Polly (segment "Penny Farthing")
Frank Forsyth	...	Uncle Albert (segment "Penny Farthing")
Joan Collins	...	Bella (segment "Mel")
Michael Jayston	...	Brian (segment "Mel")
Kim Novak	...	Auriol (segment "Luau")

Storyline

Dr Tremayne is an enigmatic Psychiatrist running a Futuristic asylum housing four very special cases. Visited by colleague Nicholas, Tremayne explains his amazing and controversial theories as to why each of the four patients went mad... cue four distinct tales each with a different set of characters: 'Mr Tiger' tells of Paul, the sensitive and troubled young son of prosperous but constantly bickering and unlovely parents, and the boy's 'imaginary' friend, a tiger. 'Penny Farthing' tells of Timothy, an antique store owner propelled backwards in time by a penny-farthing bicycle in his shop, all the while being watched over by the constantly changing photograph of Uncle Albert, which endangers the lives of both Timothy and his beautiful wife, Ann. 'Mel' tells of Brian, a man who brings home an old dead tree and prominently displays it in his living room as a work of art. His fiery wife Bella soon becomes jealous of the tree, which the husband has lovingly named Mel, and it seems to be ...

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Plot Keywords:

anthology | tree | murder of a nude woman | murder | tiger | 

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Taglines:

An orgy of the damned! It happens beyond madness - where your mind won't believe what your eyes see.

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Genres:

Horror

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Certificate:

R

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

31 October 1973 (USA)

Also Known As:

Witness Madness

Filming Locations:

Binfield Manor, Forest Road, Binfield, Bracknell, Berkshire, England, UK

Company Credits

Production Co:

World Film Services

Technical Specs

Runtime:

90 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Last cinema film of Frank Forsyth.

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Connections

Featured in Trailer Trauma 2: Drive-In Monsterama (2016)

User Reviews

Predictable but enjoyable

This is not one of those Amicus anthologies which present unexpected twists: three out of the four stories are utterly predictable from their initial set up. But then it's like one of those fairground rides - you see what you're going to get (eg a 25 foot vertical drop), but if you're into that sort of thing you can still get a thrill out of the ride (the last story in particular is quite unpleasant - watching it is like watching an unavoidable car accident in slow motion). While none of the acting is quite on the level that you get from Peter Cushing in particular in anthologies like 'The House that Dripped Blood' or 'Tales from the Crypt', it is consistently good (Joan Collins actually being more believable than in the silly story she appears in for 'Tales from the Crypt'), and Freddie Francis directs these with a good sense of atmosphere and character. One I wouldn't mind seeing again.