The Spiral Staircase
A mute servant in a storm-bound mansion fears she is the next target of a killer preying on women with disabilities.
Where to watch online
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About the film
Conflicts that freeze your emotions! Suspense that takes your breath!
What it’s about
In 1916 New England, a serial killer targets young women with physical impairments. Helen, rendered mute by a childhood trauma, works as a servant for the wheelchair-bound Mrs. Warren. After three local women are murdered, Helen fears she may be next. She plans to leave town with her sweetheart, but a violent storm forces her to stay overnight in the Warren mansion, where she must confront the danger on its spiral staircase.
What hooks you
Robert Siodmak directs Dorothy McGuire as Helen and George Brent as Professor Warren. Ethel Barrymore received an Oscar nomination for her supporting role as Mrs. Warren. The film's catalogue facts note that the killer's eyes and hands in close-ups belong to Siodmak himself.
Who it’s for
It is worth a look for anyone who enjoys slow-building tension in an old dark house setting, with a vulnerable protagonist and a lurking threat.
Ratings
MOVIE․ONE · 381 votesCreative team
All 9
Trivia
- The close-up of the killer's eyes is actually the eyes of director Robert Siodmak.
- In the close-ups of the maniac's eyes and hands, the eyes and hands actually shown are those of the film's director, Robert Siodmak (1900-1973).
- Joan Crawford (1905-1977), whose performance in George Cukor's (1899-1983) 1941 thriller "A Woman's Face" earned critical acclaim, was at one point considered for the role of the mute girl played by Dorothy McGuire (1916-2001). MGM studio head and co-founder Louis B. Mayer (1884-1957) was categorically opposed to the idea, telling the actress that she had played enough crippled and disfigured heroines.
Reviews
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6.7
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6.7
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6.3
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5.9
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7.4
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7.5
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6.5
Z
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7.0
The Dark Mirror
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6.9
The Night Stalker
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7.2
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
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The Spiral Staircase (1946)
The Spiral Staircase
1946
The Spiral Staircase
1946
The Spiral Staircase
1946