The Spiral Staircase (1945)

Director:

Robert Siodmak

Writers:

Ethel Lina White (novel)
Mel Dinelli (writer)

Release Date:

December 1945 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Horror | Mystery | Thriller

Plot:

A serial killer (circa 1916) is targeting women with 'afflictions'; one night during a thunderstorm, mute Helen feels menaced...

Plot Keywords:

Mute | Mansion | Murder | Serial Killer | Professor

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Dorothy McGuire	...	Helen Capel
George Brent	...	Professor Warren
Ethel Barrymore	...	Mrs. Warren
Kent Smith	...	Dr. Parry
Rhonda Fleming	...	Blanche
Gordon Oliver	...	Steve Warren
Elsa Lanchester	...	Mrs. Oates
Sara Allgood	...	Nurse Barker
Rhys Williams	...	Mr. Oates
James Bell	...	Constable

Also Known As:

Silence of Helen McCord (USA) (working title)
Some Must Watch (USA) (working title)

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

Iceland:12 | UK:A (original rating) (1946) | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15 | UK:PG (re-rating) (2004) | USA:Unrated

Company:

Dore Schary Productions

Trivia:

While this film was based on Ethel Lina White's 1933 novel "Some Must Watch," there are several major differences. In the novel, the maid stalked by the killer was crippled, not mute. It was also set in contemporary England, not early 1900's New England. Finally, the title of the film and the idea of incorporating a "spiral staircase" as a thematic element comes from another source entirely: Mary Roberts Rinehart's 1908 novel "The Circular Staircase."

Goofs:

Continuity: As the projectionist hand cranks the projector which is on a shaky tripod, the projector wobbles noticeably but the image on the screen is steady.

Quotes:

Constable: She's dead!
Dr. Parry: Well, in that case, Constable, I certainly can't do her any harm.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The Black Stallion (1979)

Soundtrack:

Waltz Op. 34 No. 2 in A minor

Riveting Masterpiece

The Spiral Staircase is an excellent film.

Dorothy McGuire gives a great performance as a mute woman in a town where disabled women are being killed, I think she deserved an Oscar nomination. She does a lot of emoting with her eyes and her body language.

The technical aspects of this film are amazing. The score is extremely creepy, the camera work is excellent, and the main set is well designed. There are some extreme close-ups of an eye that are very spooky.

This is a movie that Alfred Hitchcock would have made. There is a long and extremely affecting dream sequence that is riveting. Elsa Lanchester is very good as servant, and Ethel Barrymore deserved her Oscar nomination for playing the employer of the mute woman.

An excellent movie that is a must see.