What's the Matter with Helen? (1971)

User Rating:

6.2/10   

Director:

Curtis Harrington

Writer:

Henry Farrell (writer)

Release Date:

26 May 1972 (Finland)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Horror | Musical | Mystery | Romance | Thriller

Plot:

Two middle-aged women move to Hollywood, California after their sons are convicted of a notorious murder and open a dance school for children eager to tap their way to stardom.

Plot Keywords:

Hollywood | School | Hollywood California | Children | Evangelist

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar.

Cast

Debbie Reynolds	...	Adelle Bruckner (Stuart)
Shelley Winters	...	Helen Hill (Martin)
Dennis Weaver	...	Lincoln "Linc" Palmer
Agnes Moorehead	...	Sister Alma
Micheál MacLiammóir	...	Hamilton Starr (as Micheal MacLiammóir)
Helene Winston	...	Mrs. Greenbaum
Peggy Rea	...	Mrs. Schultz
Logan Ramsey	...	Detective Sergeant West
Paulle Clark	...	Mrs. Plumb
Yvette Vickers	...	Mrs. Barker
Molly Dodd	...	Mrs. Rigg
Samee Lee Jones	...	Winona Palmer
Robbi Morgan	...	Rosalie Greenbaum
Timothy Carey	...	The Tramp
Swen Swenson	...	Gigolo

Runtime:

101 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Australia:M | Finland:K-18 | Sweden:15 | USA:GP (original rating)

Company:

Filmways Pictures

Trivia:

When friend/director Curtis Harrington offered her the part, Shelley Winters took the lead role in the film without even reading the script.

Goofs:

Continuity: The second time Linc drives Adelle home, he reaches down with his right hand to shut off the car. In the subsequent shot, his right arm is firmly wrapped behind Adelle's shoulder.

Quotes:

Helen Hill: Men can be quite a bit lower than the angels.

Movie Connections:

References Sitting Pretty (1933)

Soundtrack:

Animal Crackers in My Soup

Harsh on Helen.

My God was this movie funny! It is supposed to be a horror flick, but the out-dated nature of this really gives it a b-movie feel to it. Shelly Winters is absoulutely hilarious as Helen, the unstable, "all-knowing" woman on the verge of a nervous collapse. She is so on the edge in this film, it does keep u on the edge of your seat, like your waiting for her to finally flip her wig. Speaking of wigs, Debbie Renolyds wears a couple, in one scene after she also is near a breakdown, her white locks are so frayed and tattered, her face looks like a cake left out in the rain. There is some degree of style in this film, very tacky however, but ultra-hip just the same.

My favourite scene is where Helen is at the recital, and everything is going so smoothly. Everyone is having a good ole time, except for Helen. She then begins to hallucinate and starts seeing maccabre images that have haunted her in the past (could this be what's the matter with her?). Her delusional tendencies finally make her crack as she places her hand in a metal fan! That scene had me in stiches for a couple minutes. I could not help but burst out laughing.

Because of the tackiness and gawdiness of this film, I somehow really enjoyed this seemingly unidiscovered piece of film noir. The ending actually did shock me and it was very disturbing just the same. So don't be too harsh on Helen! It's a pretty damn good flick.