Val Lewton Collection: Bedlam

From the first Val Lewton-produced horror film (Cat People, see previous post), now onto the very last: Bedlam (1946). Directed by Mark Robson, who helmed three other Lewton films, Bedlam is less a horror film, and more a historical drama with horrific overtones, much like the previous year's The Body Snatcher. The film is one of three Lewton movies to star the legendary Boris Karloff, who was famous for his roles in the Universal horror cycle.

Karloff plays George Sims, the cowardly, simpering, and quite loathsome head of the Bedlam asylum in 17th century London. Sims curries favour with Lord Mortimer and convinces him to institutionalize his former companion, Nell Bowen (Anna Lee), in the dank and oppressive confines of Bedlam.

Though boasting some grim sequences, Bedlam ultimately turns out to be a humanistic message picture about the dehumanizing treatment of "lunatics". Once locked up in Bedlam, Nell works to better the lives of the inmates and wins their sympathies. Karloff's Sims never receives sympathy, however. His character is despicable and morally contemptible. Karloff's performance here is astonishing--notice the way Sims walks with bent knees, reflecting the twisted insides of the character; he seems to scuttle around like a deranged insect. Nell's internment in Bedlam is at first foreboding and grim, but we soon come to realize that the real monster does not lurk among the inmates--it is Sims.

In retrospect it is easy to see why Bedlam was a failure upon its initial release. Marketed as a straight horror picture, with Karloff's face and name front and centre in the posters, it does not deliver the same Lewtonesque chills as the producer's other genre films. However, it succeeds as a grim, humanistic drama. Often visually striking, Bedlam is well worth watching for classic horror fans.

The DVD of Bedlam boasts a clear picture for the most part, but there is some obvious print damage in a couple of scenes. The DVD also includes Isle of the Dead, which was also directed by Mark Robson and starred Boris Karloff. That film is singularly chilling in a couple of scenes, but I'm getting ahead of myself.