BEDLAM **

This Val Lewton 'horror' film isn't that well known but it is one of his best. Inspired by the 'Bedlam' plate from Hogarth's "The Rake's Progress" it's set in and around the notorious asylum in 18th century London, presided over by Boris Karloff's cruel Master Sims. For what is essentially a B-movie it's beautifully designed and very well written by Lewton himself, under the pseudonym Carlos Keith, and the director Mark Robson. Karloff is superb and there is an excellent performance from Anna Lee as the noblewoman who ends up as one of his 'patients' while the scenes set in the asylum are unusually powerful. If, like "Freaks", the film feels outwardly exploitative, at its core this is as much a social-conscience picture as "The Snake Pit" and it remains one of Mark Robson's best films.