La escalera de caracol

In the beginning of the Twentieth Century, a serial-killer is terrorizing a small town, killing women with imperfections. In the Warren manor, the mute servant Helen (Dorothy McGuire) nurses Mrs. Warren (Ethel Barrymore) who is terminal in bed. The newcomer Dr. Parry (Kent Smith) falls in love for Helen and has the intention to take her to specialists in Boston for treatment for recovering her voice and marry her. When the reckless Steve Warren (Gordon Oliver) arrives from Europe, he stays in the mansion with his mother and his stepbrother Professor Albert Warren (George Brent) and has a brief affair with Albert's assistant Blanche (Rhonda Fleming). When a crippled woman is killed in the town, Mrs. Warren advises Helen to leave the house immediately since she is in danger. When a murder occurs in the mansion, Helen does not know who is trustful to help her to call Dr. Parry to rescue her.

"The Spiral Staircase" is a suspenseful stylish movie, with a magnificent black and white cinematography that follows the German Expressionism and wonderful set decoration in Victorian style. It is impressive the use of shadows and lights in many unforgettable scenes, like for example Blanche in the basement or Helen in the spiral staircase. The beginning is an awesome tribute to the earlier days of the cinema. The performances are excellent and it is impossible to individually highlight any actor or actress. The plot keeps the tension until the very end in this great movie. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Silêncio nas Trevas" ("Silence in the Darkness")

The Spiral Staircase is one of the most eerie and atmospheric films that I have ever had the pleasure of seeing. The entire movie gives off a sense of malice throughout, and the use of music here is some of the best I've ever seen in a movie. The film's plot follows a series of murders, of which all the victims are people with imperfections. Our hero is Helen; a young mute girl that works as a nurse for Mrs Warren, an old lady that lives in a big house. Aside from the old lady, also living in the house are her two sons; Albert and Steven, along with a few other people such as the maid. As the murders are being committed on imperfect women, the old lady becomes concerned for her mute nurse and begs her to leave. When another murder is committed in the house, the danger that the young girl is in becomes more apparent.

The first thing you will notice about this hidden gem is it's striking cinematography and lush settings. The film is very Gothic, and that gives it a very foreboding atmosphere. This is without doubt the best things about the film; in a dark thriller such as this, the atmosphere is always important, and as I said; this film has plenty. The film also features a lot of intrigue. As it has many characters that could be suspects, it leaves you guessing. Playing it's cards very close to it's chest, we don't find out who is the murderer until the very last minute.

The cast of The Spiral Staircase don't excel individually, but they come together very well as an ensemble. Most of them would never make another notable movie, although the majority have rather large filmographies. Robert Siodmak takes the directors chair, and he should be commended for his work. His use of the camera is excellent; the film features numerous close-ups, and when coupled with the haunting music; it makes for a great eeriness. There is one sequence in particular where the killer is watching his would-be victim from some bushes in the rain, and that with the haunting music in the background is altogether one of the most frightening sequences ever filmed. Cinematic perfection.

(Slight Spoilers} Effective turn of the century thriller set in New England about a killer on the loose murdering young women in the community who have imperfections in their mental or physical abilities. It's as if this murderer, like mimicking the actions a wolf pack, is attempting to cull out the sick and the weak reindeer or caribou to keep the rest of the herd strong and healthy for future breeding.

After murdering three unfortunate young women the murderer zeros in on young Helen Capel, Dorothy McGuire, a mute young women who works as a maid for the old and bed-ridden Mrs.Warren, Ethel Barrymore, at her estate outside of town.You begin to realize that the killer is in a way imperfect himself and by trying to eliminate those he deems imperfect is making up for his own imperfections.

Dorothy McGurie in one of her best roles as the mute and pretty Helen is stalked all through the movie by the killer in the shadows of the Warren Mansion and in the woods around it. There's a really scary scene early in the movie when the killer in the pouring rain follows Helen through the woods at night as she momentarily drops her key to the Warren home only to back off at the last minute when someone else unexpectedly arrives.

Ethal Barrymore is also very effective as the sick and bed-ridden Mrs. Warren who has some idea who the killer is and wants Helen to leave the house as soon as possible in order not to end up being his next victim. Both George Brent and Gordon Oliver are fine as the two step-brothers and sons of Mrs Warren in their roles as the serious Prof.Warren and his globe-trotting and fun-loving brother Steve. Who have very deep and troubling insecurities about themselves due to their late authoritative father's high standards that he set for them that they both couldn't live up too.

There's also Kent Smith as Dr. Parry who knows the real reason for Helen's loss of speech, she tragically saw her parents die in a house fire at a very young age. Dr. Perry wants to help Helen get her voice back by having her see a vocal specialist that he knows in Boston. It turned out at the end of the movie that it was shock therapy that did the trick.

Spine-tingling final when the killer comes out of the shadows and closes in on the terrified Helen for the kill chasing her up the spiral staircase of the Warren house. It's then the killer finds out only too late that he, not Helen, has gotten himself trapped in the cross-hairs of a deadly ambush.

It's 1916 and a rash of women being killed who are 'imperfect' in the eyes of the killer whomever it is have both Dr. Kent Smith and bedridden dowager Ethel Barrymore concerned for the life of Dorothy McGuire, a beautiful, but mute servant girl in her house.

There's not much mystery to this film, it's not hard to guess the identity of the perpetrator, given the limited number in the cast. But The Spiral Staircase is one of the most atmospheric films ever done. Director Robert Siodmark made terrific use of the Victorian era set of the Warren house where 90% of the film is done. The centerpiece of course being The Spiral Staircase.

Two years before a deaf mute act won Jane Wyman an Academy Award, a lot of people, me included, felt Dorothy McGuire should have at least gotten a nomination for her role. She conveys so much in her portrayal, the meekness of her character and the gradual overwhelming fear that takes over her as she senses danger. Worse even when she fixes on the wrong individual as her menace.

Ethel Barrymore got an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress as the crotchety old woman who was in McGuire's keeping. But Ethel had won the same Oscar back in 1944 for None But The Lonely Heart. She lost in the finals to Anne Baxter for The Razor's Edge.

George Brent, Gordon Oliver, Rhys Williams, Rhonda Fleming, and Elsa Lanchester round out a good cast in one of the best atmospheric thrillers ever put on film.

For sheer mastery in the art of black and white photography and its ability to provide the shadowy atmosphere necessary for mood, they don't come any better than this. The house alone is as much a part of the plot as the actors--but everything clicks...the acting, the script, the story, the direction and the brooding atmosphere that lets you know you're in for an intense and absorbingly suspenseful story. All of the suspense is relieved occasionally with just the right amount of humor. Particularly by Elsa Lanchester as the housekeeper who uses trickery to steal an extra bottle of liquor from the wine cellar. While thunder and lightning storms outside the mansion, we know that a serial killer is lurking on or near the premises, one who specializes in murdering women with physical afflictions. At the center of the story is Dorothy McGuire's character, a mute girl who lost her voice years ago during a traumatic experience. Around her are a number of people, all of whom become suspicious as the plot thickens--Kent Smith, Rhonda Fleming, George Brent, Ethel Barrymore and Gordon Oliver. Ethel Barrymore is especially good as a frightened old woman, bedridden and suspicious enough of everyone. For comparison, view the recent color TV adaptation, bland in overall effect. It will make you appreciate this black and white classic more than ever. As with most remakes, it doesn't stand a chance against the original.

My only complaint is that DOROTHY McGUIRE does not have much range in her expressions. Wide-eyed, but seldom wild, her restraint limits the amount of fear her character can express without using her voice. A more over-the-top performance might have been more useful, given the Gothic mood created so well by director Robert Siodmak. She is overshadowed by Ethel Barrymore as a bed-ridden invalid urging her to leave the house and Gordon Oliver, as the playboy step-brother who plays his role to the hilt. GEORGE BRENT does nicely for the most part, but seems too laid back in the final scenes to be as menacing as he is meant to be.

Still, well worth watching for its shadowy Victorian atmosphere alone.