SHOCK CORRIDOR must be applauded for having a wholly original plot. While you could draw some parallels to movies like THE SNAKE PIT and ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOOS NEST, these films still don't have a plot like this exposée on the mental health system.
Johnny Barrett is a reporter who has a hair-brained idea. There was a recent murder in a mental hospital but the police have been unable to solve it. So, he wants to get himself committed to the hospital and investigate it from the inside--talking with patients who might have witnessed the crime. Instead of just faking it, however, he hires a psychologist to coach him on an illness and how to fake it. Times sure have changed, as the "illness" he feigned was incest--with a very strong Freudian attitude. Yes, apparently back in the 1960s, you could get institutionalized for this--particularly if you seemed to be "fixated" or have a fetish.
So far, so good--the plan worked. However, perhaps the plan is working too well, as Johnny fits in just fine in the ward. Plus, over time, he becomes more and more like the other patients until his own sanity becomes a serious question. Some shock treatment, hydrotherapy, pills and a whole lotta time in straight-jackets later, and Johnny has trouble even remembering why he was there in the first place. Will Johnny be able to regain his senses and finish his investigation (thus, hopefully, earning the Pulitzer Prize) or will he live in his own filth and get a special group rate for all his charming new personalities? Tune in for yourself to see.
What I loved about this film, other than its originality, is the director (Sam Fuller) absolutely refusing to play this with any subtlety. Over time, Johnny and the rest make all the inmates of other mental hospital flicks seem like pansies!! Loud, crazed and shocking--this film dares to go where no film has gone before or since. For example, see a Black patient make his own KKK hood and lead an anti-Black race riot! See a morbidly obese man sing opera as he appears ready to sodomize Johnny! This film is simply amazing--combining the craziest of the crazies with a realistic portrayal of the "therapeutic" atmosphere of state mental hospitals. Tough to watch at times, but always exciting and entertaining.
Johnny Barrett is a reporter who has a hair-brained idea. There was a recent murder in a mental hospital but the police have been unable to solve it. So, he wants to get himself committed to the hospital and investigate it from the inside--talking with patients who might have witnessed the crime. Instead of just faking it, however, he hires a psychologist to coach him on an illness and how to fake it. Times sure have changed, as the "illness" he feigned was incest--with a very strong Freudian attitude. Yes, apparently back in the 1960s, you could get institutionalized for this--particularly if you seemed to be "fixated" or have a fetish.
So far, so good--the plan worked. However, perhaps the plan is working too well, as Johnny fits in just fine in the ward. Plus, over time, he becomes more and more like the other patients until his own sanity becomes a serious question. Some shock treatment, hydrotherapy, pills and a whole lotta time in straight-jackets later, and Johnny has trouble even remembering why he was there in the first place. Will Johnny be able to regain his senses and finish his investigation (thus, hopefully, earning the Pulitzer Prize) or will he live in his own filth and get a special group rate for all his charming new personalities? Tune in for yourself to see.
What I loved about this film, other than its originality, is the director (Sam Fuller) absolutely refusing to play this with any subtlety. Over time, Johnny and the rest make all the inmates of other mental hospital flicks seem like pansies!! Loud, crazed and shocking--this film dares to go where no film has gone before or since. For example, see a Black patient make his own KKK hood and lead an anti-Black race riot! See a morbidly obese man sing opera as he appears ready to sodomize Johnny! This film is simply amazing--combining the craziest of the crazies with a realistic portrayal of the "therapeutic" atmosphere of state mental hospitals. Tough to watch at times, but always exciting and entertaining.