Behind Locked Doors (1948)

Director:

Budd Boetticher

Writers:

Eugene Ling (screenplay)
Malvin Wald (screenplay)

Genre:

Drama | Film-Noir

Tagline:

MURDER was the ONLY way out!

Plot:

A well-known judge has become a fugitive from the police, with a large reward on his head. A reporter...

Plot Keywords:

Police | Asylum | Reporter | Bipolar Disorder | Psychiatry

Cast

Lucille Bremer	...	Kathy Lawrence
Richard Carlson	...	Ross Stewart
Douglas Fowley	...	Larson
Ralf Harolde	...	Fred Hopps
Thomas Browne Henry	...	Dr. Clifford Porter
Herbert Heyes	...	Judge Finlay Drake
Gwen Donovan	...	Madge Bennett

Also Known As:

Hinter verschlossenen Türen
The Human Gorilla (USA) (reissue title)

Runtime:

62 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound System)

Certification:

USA:Approved (certificate #13276) | Australia:M

Company:

Aro Productions Inc.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Budd Boetticher: A Man Can Do That (2005) (TV)

Excellent B Thriller about a Sinister Sadistic Asylum

Summary: Excellent B Thriller about a Sinister Sadistic Asylum

This is a very good zero-budget B thriller about a sadistic mental asylum. A corrupt judge who was meant to be sent to jail is on the run and hiding out in this asylum, which is run by a corrupt crony of his. So Lucille Bremer (in her last film) decides to try to collect the $10,000 reward for his capture by the police. She approaches Richard Carlson, a handsome and engaging private dick on his very first case, with the proposition that they split the reward if he will pretend to be her husband and be a manic depressive, and get himself committed to the asylum, which he does. But things go wrong! The asylum is a sadistic and criminal institution, and Carlson now cannot get out. Everybody's worst nightmare! The judge is hiding in the locked ward adjoining the violent psycho cases. One of these is 'the Champ', a psychotic former boxer who still thinks he is in the ring and wants to punch everybody to death, hence has to be kept in a locked ward. He never speaks and is wonderfully played by Tor Johnson, with such a mournful, tormented expression, glassy eyes, and as if totally stoned. No prizes for guessing that someone might end up locked in with him! Things get really sticky, and Lucille who is on the outside has to figure out some way to help Carlson who is on the inside, and time is running out. What can be done? I won't tell!