The Spiral Staircase (1945)

[Mr. Arkadin]

Shows Sunday. Any other fans of this one?

[Dawtrina]

Oh yeah, this was a good one. But with Ethel Barrymore and Elsa Lanchester in the same film, how could you go wrong?

[mrsl]

Definitely a fan of this movie. I think most of its' fans are fans of the stars more than the movie because its' name doesn't often come up during general discussions of film noir or mystery. If you mention Dorothy McGuire, you may get a reminder of it, but not necessarily in connection with murder. The basic story seems rooted in the background of Jack the Ripper, and often during watching it, I thought Ms Barrymore might have had something to do with the murders. Her actions certainly didn't exhibit much kindness. As someone said, the cast was brilliant in every respect, and the shadows and gas lighting made for a lot of breathless moments. I saw it first as a teen and although it's a mystery that gets solved, like Laura, I can watch it over and over for all the other aspects of it (acting, direction, camera, light, etc.).

Anne

[jdb1]

I first saw this one when I was a little girl, on Million Dollar Movie. The ending really frightened me. I do like Maguire very much, though, even though she has a kind of large face I don't usually like in actresses. She looks a bit like my stepmother (but with a bigger face), who I loved, so I guess that makes me feel more positively disposed towards her looks.

[feaito]

Count me as fan too. Engrossing and riveting film! Dorothy McGuire is superb! I also have an Anchor Bay DVD release of this one. That company released good quality prints.

[MikeBSG]

I really like "The Spiral Staircase" too. I think the scene in which Elsa Lanchester goes down to the cellar is something of a spoof of the "walk" scenes in Val Lewton's movies.