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      The Mad Room

      PG Released May 1, 1969 1 hr. 32 min. Mystery & Thriller List
      Reviews 30% Fewer than 50 Ratings Audience Score Ellen Hardy (Stella Stevens) gets a rude awakening when she discovers that her brother and sister are scheduled to leave their mental institution. As children, they were put there after killing their parents. Ellen, who now lives in the house of an old widow, Mrs. Armstrong (Shelley Winters), takes them in. But if their secret gets out, it could jeopardize Ellen's plans to wed Mrs. Armstrong's stepson. She struggles with anxiety -- until Mrs. Armstrong suddenly turns up dead. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Jan 02 Buy Now

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      Audience Reviews

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      Audience Member Loosely adapted from the 1940 play and 1941 film, Ladies in Retirement, The Mad Room is a slow building, sinister thriller that explores themes of insanity and mistrust. Stylistically, it combines traditional, noir-ish cinematography with occasional new wave elements like jumbled, overlapping dialogue and splashes of paint-red blood. Unfortunately, the creepy story is ultimately somewhat undermined by a campy plot device and abrupt ending. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/03/23 Full Review Audience Member Old school horror drama. Quite a good story. Two young kids are send to mental institute for killing their own parents. Blood drawings of flowers are everywhere. Their eldest sister grows up to be Stella Stevens. She live with a widow Shelly Winters and engaged to Skip Ward, step-son of Shelly. Carol Cole is the PA of Shelly. Stella receive a letter telling her to receive her two grown up siblings Michael Burns & Barbara Sammeth. Stella decide to spin a fake story to hide their past in order to let them stay at Shelly's home. Barbara is more uptight and want a mad room where she can be alone and think of solution to her problem. She don't want the basement as it remind her of been punished during the stay in the mental institute. Stella broke the rule by letting them using the attic as mad room which stores many things belonging to the late husband of Shelly. It is out of bound to everyone. At night, Shelly enter and found Barbara there and demand answers so she fake up a story. But what puzzled Shelly is she found a book belong to her which have a stamp from the mental institute. Stella is forced to tell the truth. Shelly don't wish the siblings to stay anymore. A while later Shelly is murdered rather brutally by the army sword up in the attic. Blood drawings of flowers are around. Michael and Barbara start to deny and accuse each other. Stella gonna pack up the mess. Next day she ask Carol to go on the day off. The pet dog has taken away the severed palm of Shelly. They throw the corpse down the river and plan the story she was painting by the river and fell. As the meeting goes on in the house, a member whose young husband often provide sexual massage to the ladies begin to expose Shelly dirty deed. She run up to the toilet and slash her wrist. While cleaning up, Stella use the blood to draw flowers around. This moment we know Stella is the murderer of her parents all along as well as Shelly. The two young kids are too small to know or remember what they did. Barbara begin to suspect it is Stella all along when she saw the toilet drawings. Stella want her siblings to go live with another cousin. She want them out of her going to be perfect life. Skip came to find Shelly. Stella found the dog biting on the palm and she follow it to the basement and use the sword to kill it. Skip came down and Stella says "Forgive them".. the end credits up. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member The movie info is wrong, They never tried to bury Gladys, the dog got the hand when she was still in the attic. Just wanted to clarify. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 02/22/23 Full Review Audience Member A good cast is wasted in this poorly conceived thriller. Supposedly a remake, more of a reworking, of Ladies in Retirement it's a poor substitute. Watch the far superior original instead, that's a good movie this is not. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 02/27/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Movie Info

      Synopsis Ellen Hardy (Stella Stevens) gets a rude awakening when she discovers that her brother and sister are scheduled to leave their mental institution. As children, they were put there after killing their parents. Ellen, who now lives in the house of an old widow, Mrs. Armstrong (Shelley Winters), takes them in. But if their secret gets out, it could jeopardize Ellen's plans to wed Mrs. Armstrong's stepson. She struggles with anxiety -- until Mrs. Armstrong suddenly turns up dead.
      Director
      Bernard Girard
      Screenwriter
      Garrett Fort, Reginald Denham, Bernard Girard, A. Martin Zweiback
      Production Co
      Columbia
      Rating
      PG
      Genre
      Mystery & Thriller
      Original Language
      English
      Release Date (Theaters)
      May 1, 1969, Limited
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Oct 10, 2013
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