Asylum

I must admit that when I read the box and saw the cast of "Asylum" includes Peter Cushing, Britt Ekland and Herbert Lom, I thought to myself "Dr. Van Helsing, Peter Sellers's ex, and Insp. Clouseau's boss in a horror flick. Whoa." It turns out that while parts of the movie come out a little flat, it's some pretty cool entertainment. Portraying a neophyte doctor coming to an insane asylum and having to guess which patient is the former head doctor, they know how to do most things right.

The vignettes show two people plotting to kill a woman who, unbeknownst to them, practiced voodoo; a tailor having to make a most unusual suit; a woman and her "friend"; and a mannequin maker. Ah, but wait until you find out who the former doctor is! Not that this really relates to anything, but I never realized how hot Britt Ekland is! I've seen her in a few movies, but in none has she sent my hormones as wild as she did here. Of course, I just go crazy for any of those blonde actresses from the '60s (others include Barbara Eden and Elke Sommer).

So, this movie isn't any kind of masterpiece, but it doesn't pretend to be. Just nice, silly entertainment. Also starring Patrick Magee (the wheelchair man from "A Clockwork Orange") and Charlotte Rampling.

From the mid-1960s through the mid-1970s the British-based film studio Amicus was a rival to the more famous and productive Hammer Films. Amicus didn't go in for Gothics, as a rule, but they mastered the art of the so-called "portmanteau" film, where four or five short stories are presented within a linking framework. They also mastered the art of hiring noted(and often very fine) British actors for only a day or two's worth of shooting, so that the final product ends up with an all-star cast. "Asylum" followed 1965's "Dr. Terror's House of Horrors," which was immensely fun, if incredibly cheap; 1967's "Torture Garden," 1970's "The House that Dripped Blood," and 1972's "Tales From the Crypt," and one can argue that it is the best of the lot ("The Vault of Horror" and "From Beyond the Grave" followed in 1973, and the mini-genre wrapped up in 1980 with "The Monster Club," but all of those were somewhat inferior to the earlier films). The success of "Asylum" is not simply due to it's terrific cast -- Peter Cushing (who appeared in nearly all of Amicus's portmanteau films), Herbert Lom, Patrick Magee, Richard Todd, Britt Ekland, Barbara Parkins, Charlotte Rampling, Sylvia Sims, Robert Powell, Barry Morse and the undersung Geoffrey Bayldon -- or its intriguing stories by American author Robert Bloch (who also scripted "Torture Garden" and "House that Dripped Blood"), but also the down-to-earth direction by Roy Ward Baker. Baker manages to keep his, Bloch's, and his actors' tongues all out of their cheeks, and the film is all the better for it.

The framing story concerns a new doctor (Powell) interviewing at a remote asylum, and being challenged by the doctor in charge (Magee, a brilliant Shakespearean actor who all too often ended up doing inferior horror films) to identify the former director of the place, who is now an inmate. As Powell interviews the various inmates, the different stories ensue. For horror film fans, the best story is the first one (which was not the first one in the script, but was elevated to that position over Bloch's objections); while not giving the plot away, suffice to say that it takes a story device that could have been rendered very cheesily and makes it wonderfully effective and creepy. Amicus buffs, meanwhile, will recognize the linking story as probably the most effective and logical of any in the portmanteau series of films. The remaining stories are all fine, with the most outré being the one that Cushing stars in.

"Asylum" is definitely worth, uh, checking into.

Guided by a genuine musical score, a young doctor is driving towards an asylum for the `incurably insane'…This is the fourth horror omnibus by the specialist production company Amicus. `Asylum' is determined and effective horror, done without too much humor or decoration elements. Fairly new and definitely creative about this anthology is the narrative. The so-called wraparound story involves a young applicant-psychiatrist put to a test by the director of the asylum. Through listening to the stories of 4 patients, he has to make out which one of them is the previous director gone mad! This little extra, interactive elements gives more tension to the film and, as a viewer, you're automatically searching along. The stories themselves vary from simple to ingenious, climaxing in a cheerfully gruesome finale. The first story isn't exactly original and covers the well-known matter of adultery and revenge. Some nice over-the-top scenery in this tale, as well as some pretty good acting. The second tale is a lot better already and features Peter Cushing! Cushing often shows up in these Amicus productions and this time, he plays a mysteriously occult man who approaches a tailor with a strange request. This chapter is very atmospheric, stressing the poverty and the desperate need for money by the tailor (Barry Morse). The premise is silly and not well worked out, but the tension and chills triumph. I didn't care at all for the third story as it's just a lame variant on the `schizophrenic'-theme. It's obvious from the beginning and I wonder why they even bothered to show it as a mystery. The only aspect that made this chapter even bearable was the presence of England's fines female beauties! Charlotte Rampling was rather gorgeous around the time Asylum was shot and the absolute siren in this film is the ravishing Britt Ekland. If you're not familiar with her, run out to the nearest videostore and get yourself a copy of `The Wicker Man' now!! The fourth and final story is close to brilliant and actually takes place IN the wraparound story, which is pretty unique. Veteran actor Herbert Lom stars in this tale that enlightens a whole new kind of `voodoo'. It has blood-thirsty, lifelike manikins and it's bloody good fun. A creepy highlight and an appropriate closure to a good film. Sure as hell recommended for the British horror fans amongst you! Asylum is well written by Robert Bloch (who adapted his own stories) and solidly directed by Roy Ward Baker, who also did some good work for the famous `Hammer' corporation.

If I may proclaim some shameless promotion: Asylum recently got re-released in a worthy Amicus Box Set! The set is uniquely shaped like a coffin and contains – besides Asylum – other highlights such as `The House that Dripped Blood', `The Beast Must Die', `And now the Screaming Starts' and `Dr. Terror's House of Horror'. Trust me, it'll look great in your collection.

Another in the line of 70's hammer horror, Asylum is yet again a gloriously camp and cliched horror flick complete with manic characters, incredibly OTT acting, mansion/haunted castle type locations, and of course, fog.

Asylum follows a young new qualified psychiatrist called Dr Martin, dryly played by a very young Robert Powell. He's applying for a job at an asylum and the interview is a far more bizarre one than any applicant for a new position would be used to.

He is greeted by Dr Rutherford, who appears to be the chairman figurehead of the asylum, who will interview him to establish his suitability.

However, it turns out there is a twist here, because in order to get the new job, Dr Martin is told he must successfully identify who is Dr Starr, the head of the institution. Simple you might think. Unfortunately Dr Starr is now a patient after attacking Rutherford and paralysing him from the waist down. Martin will be given a tour of 'upstairs' by Reynolds, the asylum orderly, and be taken round each case in order to see if he can identify which one really is Starr.

This leads to compendium style stories as we look back into the past of each patient - which one of these stories is actually true?

It must be said the whole cast appear to be having a whole heck of a lot of fun, and star turns from the likes of Patrick Magee, Peter Cushing, Brit Ekland and Charlotte Rampling ensure there's a quality behind the lunacies.

Daft in places? Of course! Archaic? Without a doubt! Fantastic fun and satisfying? Indeed!

Well worth seeing.

'Asylum' holds a special place in my heart as watching it on TV as a kid in the 70s is one of my earliest horror memories, along with Rod Serling's almost forgotten series 'Night Gallery' and the underrated Cushing/Lee movie 'The Creeping Flesh'. I watched 'Asylum' the other day for the first time in oh, twenty years at least, and while it wasn't anywhere near as scary as I remember it to be, it's still one of the better horror anthologies of the period. It's helped considerably by having Robert Bloch adapt his own stories, Roy Ward Baker ('The Vampire Lovers', 'Dr Jekyll and Sister Hyde') as the director, and it features a first rate cast including horror legends Peter Cushing, Patrick Magee, and Herbert Lom. The most effective stories for me were the two in the middle - the one with Barry Morse as a tailor with a mysterious client (Cushing), and the other with a fragile Charlotte Rampling being led astray by the sexy Britt Ekland. 'Asylum' has a few flaws sure, but it's still a very entertaining film, and horror buffs will enjoy it.