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Bedlam (film)
Encyclopedia
Bedlam is a film starring Boris Karloff
and Anna Lee
, and was the last in a series of stylish B films produced by Val Lewton
for RKO Radio Pictures. The film was inspired by William Hogarth
's A Rake's Progress
, and Hogarth was given a writing credit.
, also known as "Bedlam". After an acquaintance of aristocrat Lord Mortimer dies in an attempt to escape from the asylum, apothecary general Master George Sims (played by Karloff, a fictionalized version of an infamous head physician at Bethlem, John Monro
) appeases Mortimer by having his "loonies
" put on a show for him. Mortified by the treatment of the patients, Mortimer's protege Nell Bowen (Lee) seeks the help of Whig
politician John Wilks to reform the asylum
. Mortimer and Sims conspire to committ Nell to the asylum, where her initial fears of the fellow inmates do not sway her sympathetic commitment to improving their conditions. Frustrated by Nell's progress with the inmates, Sims threatens her with his strongest "cure" but his attempt is thwarted by the very inmates that Nell helped. Ultimately, Sims is literally "deposed" and Nell is rescued by her Quaker friend who had counseled her through the whole process.
Cast notes
The film has been released on DVD by Warner Bros.
as part of a double release with Isle Of The Dead
and as part of the Val Lewton Horror Collection. It features a commentary by film historian Tom Weaver.
Boris Karloff
William Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
and Anna Lee
Anna Lee
Anna Lee, MBE was an English actress.-Career:Lee studied at the Royal Albert Hall, then debuted with a bit part in the film His Lordship...
, and was the last in a series of stylish B films produced by Val Lewton
Val Lewton
Val Lewton was an American film producer and screenwriter, best known for a string of low-budget horror films he produced for RKO Pictures in the 1940s.-Early life:...
for RKO Radio Pictures. The film was inspired by William Hogarth
William Hogarth
William Hogarth was an English painter, printmaker, pictorial satirist, social critic and editorial cartoonist who has been credited with pioneering western sequential art. His work ranged from realistic portraiture to comic strip-like series of pictures called "modern moral subjects"...
's A Rake's Progress
A Rake's Progress
A Rake's Progress is a series of eight paintings by 18th century English artist William Hogarth. The canvases were produced in 1732–33 then engraved and published in print form in 1735...
, and Hogarth was given a writing credit.
Plot
Set in 1761 London, England, the film focuses on events at St. Mary's of Bethlehem Asylum, a fictionalized version of Bethlem Royal HospitalBethlem Royal Hospital
The Bethlem Royal Hospital is a psychiatric hospital located in London, United Kingdom and part of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Although no longer based at its original location, it is recognised as the world's first and oldest institution to specialise in mental illnesses....
, also known as "Bedlam". After an acquaintance of aristocrat Lord Mortimer dies in an attempt to escape from the asylum, apothecary general Master George Sims (played by Karloff, a fictionalized version of an infamous head physician at Bethlem, John Monro
John Monro (physician)
John Monro was a physician and specialist in insanity who was the physician at the primary English mental hospital Bethlem Hospital, better known as Bedlam.-Family:...
) appeases Mortimer by having his "loonies
Lunatic
"Lunatic" is a commonly used term for a person who is mentally ill, dangerous, foolish, unpredictable; a condition once called lunacy. The word derives from lunaticus meaning "of the moon" or "moonstruck".-Lunar hypothesis:...
" put on a show for him. Mortified by the treatment of the patients, Mortimer's protege Nell Bowen (Lee) seeks the help of Whig
British Whig Party
The Whigs were a party in the Parliament of England, Parliament of Great Britain, and Parliament of the United Kingdom, who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s to the 1850s. The Whigs' origin lay in constitutional monarchism and opposition to absolute rule...
politician John Wilks to reform the asylum
Psychiatric hospital
Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental hospitals, are hospitals specializing in the treatment of serious mental disorders. Psychiatric hospitals vary widely in their size and grading. Some hospitals may specialise only in short-term or outpatient therapy for low-risk patients...
. Mortimer and Sims conspire to committ Nell to the asylum, where her initial fears of the fellow inmates do not sway her sympathetic commitment to improving their conditions. Frustrated by Nell's progress with the inmates, Sims threatens her with his strongest "cure" but his attempt is thwarted by the very inmates that Nell helped. Ultimately, Sims is literally "deposed" and Nell is rescued by her Quaker friend who had counseled her through the whole process.
Cast
- Boris KarloffBoris KarloffWilliam Henry Pratt , better known by his stage name Boris Karloff, was an English actor.Karloff is best remembered for his roles in horror films and his portrayal of Frankenstein's monster in Frankenstein , Bride of Frankenstein , and Son of Frankenstein...
as Master George Sims - Anna LeeAnna LeeAnna Lee, MBE was an English actress.-Career:Lee studied at the Royal Albert Hall, then debuted with a bit part in the film His Lordship...
as Nell Bowen - Billy HouseBilly HouseBilly House was an US vaudevillian, Broadway performer and feature film actor. After devoting most of his career to live performance, he moved to Hollywood where he became a supporting actor during the 1940s and 1950s...
as Lord Mortimer - Richard FraserRichard Fraser (actor)-Early life:After attending Cambridge University, Richard Fraser studied acting at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts. Spending time as a London stage actor, Richard came to Hollywood before WWII, where he signed a contract with 20th Century Fox and appeared in several films.-Career:His American...
as Hannay - Glen Vernon as The Gilded Boy
- Ian WolfeIan WolfeIan Wolfe was an American actor whose films date from 1934 to 1990. Until 1934, he worked as a theatre actor. Wolfe mostly found work as a character actor, appearing in over 270 films...
as Sidney Long - Jason Robards Sr. as Oliver Todd
- Leyland Hodgson as John WilkesJohn WilkesJohn Wilkes was an English radical, journalist and politician.He was first elected Member of Parliament in 1757. In the Middlesex election dispute, he fought for the right of voters—rather than the House of Commons—to determine their representatives...
- Joan Newton as Dorothea the Dove
- Elizabeth Russell as Mistress Sims
Cast notes
- Elizabeth Russell, the sister-in-law of Rosalind RussellRosalind RussellRosalind Russell was an American actress of stage and screen, perhaps best known for her role as a fast-talking newspaper reporter in the Howard Hawks screwball comedy His Girl Friday, as well as the role of Mame Dennis in the film Auntie Mame...
, was a regular in films produced by Val Lewton, appearing in Cat People (1942), its sequel The Curse of the Cat PeopleThe Curse of the Cat PeopleThe Curse of the Cat People is a 1944 film directed by Gunther von Fritsch and Robert Wise, and produced by Val Lewton. This film, which was then-film editor Robert Wise's first directing credit, is the sequel to Cat People and has many of the same characters...
(1944), The Seventh VictimThe Seventh VictimThe Seventh Victim is a 1943 horror and film noir starring Tom Conway, Jean Brooks, Isabel Jewell, Kim Hunter , and Hugh Beaumont, directed by Mark Robson, and produced by Val Lewton for RKO Radio Pictures...
(1943) and Youth Runs WildYouth Runs WildYouth Runs Wild is a 1944 B movie about unattentive parents and juvenile delinquency, produced by Val Lewton, directed by Mark Robson and starring Bonita Granville, Kent Smith, Jean Brooks, Glen Vernon and Vanessa Brown...
1944.
Releases
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
as part of a double release with Isle Of The Dead
Isle of the Dead (film)
Isle of the Dead is one of producer Val Lewton's horror films made for RKO Radio Pictures. The movie had a script inspired by the painting Isle of the Dead by Arnold Böcklin, which appears behind the title credits, though the film was originally titled "Camilla" during production...
and as part of the Val Lewton Horror Collection. It features a commentary by film historian Tom Weaver.