The Spiral Staircase

I was surprised when I learned that "The Spiral Staircase" was a remake of an earlier movie, and that it's been remade since. The movie is actually little that we haven't seen before: disabled - in this case mute - woman (Jacqueline Bisset) suspects that someone is trying to kill her, she moves in with family, and there's eventually a big showdown. And the ending was pretty anticlimactic; at one point, you can basically tell what's going to happen.

However, there was one thing that I derived from the movie. Christopher Plummer's character in one scene talks about no tolerance for imperfection. We in the 21st century have taken that to the extreme. We want everyone made up so that they all look the same, we go for style over substance, and more. Then again, I'm probably reading too far into the movie, as it was most likely intended as a straight thriller (although it doesn't really thrill).

Anyway, it's a mediocre way to pass time. Also starring Elaine Stritch and John Philip Law (the "Barbarella" angel).

I've only seen one other version of this story--Robert Siodmak's 1946 adaptation--but boy, does this one suffer by comparison. Whereas Siodmak's vision is suspenseful, atmospheric, and shadow-soaked, Collinson doesn't bring much to The Spiral Staircase apart from '70s made-for-TV cliches like crash-zooms and POV shots from the killer's perspective, with dreary cinematography straight out of an early episode of Columbo.

"GASP! Oh, it's only you! You startled me. Say, what are you doing down here? No...don't come any closer! No...no.... NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" *gets murdered*

The performances are mediocre. Christopher Plummer is one of those actors who can turn in amazing work when he cares. Here, he doesn't seem to. Jacqueline Bissett is, frankly, quite forgettable in the lead role. When actors don't have dialogue to lean on, they sure had better be charismatic and expressive; as the mute Helen, the wooden Bissett is just not up to the challenge. Mildred Dunnock, as the family matriarch on her deathbed, is probably the strongest member of the cast.

What else is there to say? It's a mess, and not a very interesting one. Helen's backstory, in which her husband and daughter died in a fire, doesn't add up to much, and the flashbacks are so ridiculous they're hard to take seriously. The music is standard. I can't take pride in having guessed the identity of the killer early on, but I think I would have guessed it just as easily even had I not seen the 1946 version. The best idea in the movie is a sequence (I don't remember if this was included in prior versions and haven't read the novel) in which Helen, being stalked through the house by the now-unmasked killer, finds that Mrs. Oates, the housekeeper, is unable to help her--not because she is dead or incapacitated, but merely because she is too drunk to take the events seriously.

It takes special kind of psycho to deliberately target disabled people for not being perfect; while regular movie maniacs tend to reserve their rage for healthy victims (often teenagers in the prime of their life), the killer in The Spiral Staircase has it in for those with physical impairments. Having already bumped off several handicapped people (the latest being a blind woman), the loony sets their sights on pretty mute Helen (Jacqueline Bisset), who has been unable to speak since a fire tragically claimed the lives of her husband and daughter.

A remake of the 1946 movie of the same name, this 1975 version is primarily set in a remote country house during a thunderstorm that frequently threatens to wipe out the power and plunge the film's raft of disparate characters into darkness: in addition to Helen, the building's occupants are Professor Sherman (Christopher Plummer), his sexy Southern secretary Blanche (Gayle Hunnicutt), the prof's mother (Mildred Dunnock) and younger brother Steven (John Phillip Law), Mrs Sherman's nurse (Elaine Stritch), handyman Oates (Ronald Radd) and his drunken wife (Sheila Brennan).

Despite the creepy local, the stormy setting, plenty of suspects, victims and red herrings, and the delightfully perverse notion of a killer targeting the most defenceless, The Spiral Staircase is actually about as thrilling as Professor Sherman's line of expertise: management skills (yawn!). Director Peter Collinson (The Italian Job) fails to generate any tension, boredom being the most likely emotion experienced by viewers as the thunder crashes, the rain pours, and no-one in the house gets killed for almost an entire hour. When the murders do begin, they are poorly staged and totally devoid of gore-definitely not worth the excruciatingly dull wait.

For a much more suspenseful film about a disabled woman being threatened by a homicidal maniac, watch Blind Terror, AKA See No Evil (1971), starring Mia Farrow, or even Eyes of a Stranger (1981) with Jennifer Jason Leigh ('nuff said!).

The original The Spiral Staircase, made in 1945 in black and white by director Robert Siodmak, was one of the finest killer-on-the-loose-in-a-spooky-mansion films of all-time. This 1975 remake is a very poor attempt to update and remake the original. There is less tension this time around, as director Peter Collinson allows things to proceed at a sluggish pace. Even the performances are weaker, despite the fact that this film has a comparatively star-studded cast for its era.

Helen Mallory (Jacqueline Bisset) has been unable to speak since she witnessed her husband and child being killed in a house fire. Her doctor, Dr Rawley (John Ronane), has tried for several years to help her recover her speech but without success. He is very concerned for Helen's safety, as a serial killer has recently been at work in the city and all the victims share one thing in common – they are all disabled in some way. Helen goes away to her uncle's nearby mansion, which also doubles as an institution for the handicapped. Here she finds herself in the company of her uncle Joe Sherman (Christopher Plummer), his secretary and lover Blanche (Gayle Hunnicut), angry brother Steven Sherman (John Philip Law), a strict nurse (Elaine Stritch), housekeepers Mr and Mrs Oates (Ronald Radd, Sheila Brennan) and the ill, old bed-bound Sherman mother (Mildred Dunnock). A ferocious thunderstorm plunges the house into a power-cut, and before long it becomes apparent that the serial killer who has been preying upon handicapped women is one of those trapped inside the mansion. It is now Helen who finds herself next on the killer's list, unless she can find a way to survive….

This is such a reliable, some might say "archetypal", story that all it needed was some thoughtful lighting and a well-judged sense of pace in order to work. But sadly director Collinson has spent too much time setting up pointless and weird camera angles instead of concentrating on the basics of suspense. If he had gone for the afore-mentioned thoughtful lighting and the better-judged sense of pace, this would have emerged a half-decent remake. The actors seem indifferent towards the material and give performances way below their best. Bisset has the difficulty of contending with a wordless role and is nothing more than average in the part; Plummer looks rightfully bored as the professor; Law snaps and snarls ineffectually as his bad-tempered brother; Dunnock spends most of the film acting drugged as the poorly old mother of the clan. For a good hour or so, very little happens in the film and one invariably finds oneself staring vacantly at the screen, waiting with misplaced optimism for a flash of suspense. Not even the music by David Lindup manages to generate any excitement or atmosphere. When the killings finally begin and Helen goes on the run in the dark passages of the house, trying to escape from her murderous assailant, the sequence is done rather flatly with little in the way of true excitement. If you're planning on watching a version of The Spiral Staircase some time soon, the best advice I can give is that you stick with the vastly superior original!

Remake of the 1946 classic. Helen Mallory (Jacqueline Bisset) has been rendered mute after seeing her husband and only child die in a fire. She is now staying at her uncle's mansion and getting treatment. However there is a killer on the loose who kills people who have disabilities. Is Helen next?

Pointless redo. The original is a classic--what's the point or remaking it? I caught this on TV late at night back in the 1970s. I had seen the original and was interested in seeing how this stood up. Sadly it turned out to be pretty bad. Despite a great cast (Bisset, Christopher Plummer, John Phillip Law, Elaine Stritch) this is pretty slow-moving and dull. There's virtually no suspense or atmosphere and it looks like it was made on a very low budget which hurts. The cast tries their best but even their considerable talents can't liven this up. You can safely skip this one. See the original.

I give it a 3 because the cast does try and Bisset looks stunning (as always).