The Fifth Floor

'Strong supporting cast. Dianne Hull is underrated in this movie. The storyline gets a little weak towards the end when the director has to tie up all the lose ends. The ending scene pretty much wipes away most of the good acting in this film. The shock treatment scene wasn't as brutal, or dramatic as it could have been. The scenery and locations for the time were an execellent choice. If you find yourself looking to pick up an extra movie for the weekend and want something not so light or heavy, rent this. Worth the two bucks.

Although this was made in 1978, I recall seeing this with Don't Go In The House in 1980 at the drive-in theatre. Oddly enough I was attending psychiatric technician training at the time. Bo Hopkins after introducing himself to the unfortunate disco heroine as 'your friendly psychiatric technician' goes on to deliver a good performance with convincing menace beneath a superficial cheery 'therapeutic' demeanor. Sharon Farrell is convincing as a patient. The always creepy Anthony James gives one of his best performances and, horror fans, Robert 'Freddie' Englund is also on hand as a patient. Toss in some disco and you got some kind of late 70's semi-classic drive-in entertainment.If nothing else, watching Bo Hopkins puffing on a cigarette as he worked reminded me of 1980, when it was commonplace to see staff and patients smoking on a unit. Note too, that Bo appears to be working AM, PM (Swing) and Noc shift in this movie. No doubt racking up some good OT money but perhaps driving himself to some of the behaviors he displays. (For me) nostalgic fun ** out of *****

The lovely and appealing Dianne Hull ("Aloha, Bobby and Rose") plays Kelly McIntyre, a college student and disco dancer who suffers seizures on the dance floor one night. It turns out that she's been the victim of strychnine poisoning, but too many authority figures think she's delusional and suicidal, prompting them to place her in the psychiatric ward - the fifth floor of the tile - of the hospital. She has a very hard time convincing people that she's quite sane, and avoiding the lecherous paws of ultra-creepy orderly Carl (Bo Hopkins, "The Wild Bunch").

This is a reasonably entertaining exploitation-drama, somewhat forgotten over time, that should be of interest to fans of the genre. Purporting to be "based on" a true story, it's got an effectively sordid premise, complete with some nastiness and nudity along the way. It takes Kelly's tale seriously, allowing us to build sufficient sympathy for her as well as for some of her fellow inmates. It does have some genuine pathos going for it; Patti D'Arbanville plays a pregnant inmate named Cathy afraid of having her baby taken away, and Sharon Farrell (in a standout performance) is the frail and vulnerable Melanie; ones' heart just goes out to this poor, messed-up woman.

The film does a great job of really having you hate the Carl character. This is one of Hopkins' best roles and performances, and you keep waiting for this person to get some sort of comeuppance. Other roadblocks in Kelly's way include an administrator (guest star Mel Ferrer) and a head nurse (Julie Adams), who tend to dismiss Kelly and her plight.

The quirky characters are a highlight, enacted by a variety of familiar faces: Robert "Freddy Krueger" Englund (his entrance has him pretending to be a doctor), Anthony James (the antagonist in director Howard Avedis' "The Teacher") as the hostile Derrick, Earl Boen ("The Terminator") as the nerdy Phil, and Alice "Large Marge" Nunn as Emma. Pay close attention and you'll spot Michael Berryman ("The Hills Have Eyes" '77) as another inmate; however, Tracey Walter ("Repo Man") is harder to spot. Director Avedis and his actress wife Marlene Schmidt, who came up with the screen story, have small roles in the film.

Overall, this is engaging trash, that is more vivid than one might see in a TV movie treatment of such material.

Seven out of 10.

The Fifth Floor is a fun little horror/women-behind-bars hybrid with a great cast. The story, about a go-go dancer railroaded into an asylum, is based on a truly horrifying premise: Under certain circumstances, everything you say or do can be interpreted as a sign of madness. This could've been a very dark, lurid nuthouse shocker, but, perhaps in a bid for respectability, the sleaze factor is considerably played down. The result is a lightweight cult creation that, although lacking in ferocity, still comes across thanks to good acting and a real sense of helpless fear in key scenes. Pattie Brooks sings a very catchy number called "Fly Away" in the opening disco scene. Not bad at all.

THE FIFTH FLOOR opens at the Demons Disco Club, where Kelly McIntyre (Dianne Hull) arrives to join in on whatever disco dance craze is taking place at the moment. One must say that she certainly has the moves!

Uh oh!

Something goes horribly awry, causing Kelly to convulse violently on the floor, as if she's being tortured with cattle prods! Is this just her attempt at some daring new dance routine? The next thing she knows, Kelly's trapped in the nuthouse, being examined by Dr. Freddy Krueger! The rest is a nightmare for poor Kelly, who only wants to be free to boogie once more. Nothing can prepare you for the zany "group therapy" session!

If you've been searching for a movie that captures the rigors of disco, combined with the obligatory torment of the Women In Prison sub-genre, that is set in a mental hospital, then search no more! Ms. Hull's lethargic, near-dead performance is perfectly realized, and her fretting is unparalleled.

SPECIAL MENTION: For Bo Hopkins, who plays the sleazy orderly known as Carl with all the Carl-ness that anyone could possibly muster. No one chews gum or smokes cigarettes like Bo! No one!...