Phonearl Good start, but then it gets ruined

Connianatu How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

Sameer Callahan It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

Cissy Évelyne It really made me laugh, but for some moments I was tearing up because I could relate so much.

spmact I thought this might be a good example of the great classic Vincent Price horror movie. Given the fact that Peter Cushing was also in it, I was definitely on board. The two do great jobs, but it was just a bad story. The direction was good at parts, for some I had to wonder what the director was thinking. It's as if he made the movie for grade-schoolers. It's full of plot holes, convenient occurrences and things people would never do. The ending was uninspired and predictable, but also confusing. At the end of the day, I can't recommend this movie - even with the great actors in it.I'm only giving it 6/10 out of respect for Price. Otherwise it would be lower.

InjunNose Any movie that teams Vincent Price with Peter Cushing (and features Robert Quarry of "Count Yorga" fame and Adrienne Corri, to boot) should be more fun than "Madhouse" ultimately was. This tale of a horror film star (Price) who, with the assistance of his screenwriter friend (Cushing), comes out of retirement years after the mysterious murder of his fiancée just never gets going. While the performances are uniformly decent, the dialogue is clunky and many of the plot developments simply make no sense. The viewer can't help feeling that Ken Levison and Greg Morrison just didn't have their hearts in the screenplay and that Price, Cushing and company responded in kind. (It's obvious that Price, especially, understands he's working with substandard material.) Director Jim Clark conjures some eerie atmosphere in the murder scenes that take place around Cushing's rural cottage, but the rest of "Madhouse" is strictly ho-hum. Too bad that it was Price's last hurrah at AIP.

TheLittleSongbird I saw Madhouse as I love Vincent Price and would see anything with him in, regardless of its reputation. Madhouse is not one of his best sadly, actually of the films of his I've seen(I need to see more but I have seen enough to know of his talent and most of them are good to great films) only Story of Mankind was worse. Madhouse does have major problems, the footage was interesting but doesn't always add much to the story or the atmosphere, while the script felt rushed and cobbled together and the story, although I didn't mind the unoriginality, just didn't thrill me enough and felt obvious complete with a twist that was entirely unsurprising. The film does feel stodgily paced sometimes also. On the other hand, the production values are decent, the editing could've been crisper but the settings and such do have a nice edge to them. The music is reasonably atmospheric also, but it is the cast that really lift this film. Peter Cushing is underused but as ever he is good value, and Robert Quarry is amusingly slimy. Their scene at the costume party was a lot of fun. Best of all was Price, proving once again that no matter the state of the film or script that he can do no wrong, with his magnetic presence, distinctive voice and deadpan delivery of lines, all present here. Overall, not sure if I recommend it but for Price or Cushing completists it is at least worth a look. Not a bad film, in fact better than its rather dismissive reputation, but considering the promise of the idea it had and the cast it could have been much more at the same time. 6/10 Bethany Cox

amesmonde An ageing horror star comes out of retirement only to find murder follows him everywhere he goes.There's nothing better than watching two stars, in this case horror stars grace the same screen. Very loosely based on Angus Hall's novel Devil day (1969) Madhouse is certainly of it's time (1974) which is a good thing, making it contemporary of that time and different to their older films. After parties, Cine films, film reels, film launches, tributes and the trappings of fame are on show indicative of film world at that time. Madhouse is wonderfully shot, rich in contrast, with excellent set design and locations. It exudes atmosphere in places and is genuinely creepy in spots, still it's an odd film, almost surreal in places, especially the scenes in the cellar and the body on the boat.With a striking looking supporting cast both Vincent Price and Peter Cushing are excellent. Even though in their fermenting ages which is a shame, it's fitting to the story, and you can't help feel that there's irony baste over irony in Prices role of Paul Toombes, even maybe a hint of truth in the dialogue of his character. Mild-mannered Cushing as Herbert Flay unfortunately doesn't get as much screen-time as you'd like. This is certainly Price's show and he effortlessly captures the viewer with his immense presence and deep tones as much as he did 10 years earlier in The Last Man on Earth (1964).Although reminiscent in feel of The House on Haunted Hill (1959) and The Satanic Rites of Dracula (1973) it's my no means a 'classic' but there is enough killings, spiders, old horror clips, kooky cops and good performances to keep you watching veteran editor Jim Clark's (Charade (1963), Memphis Belle (1990)) last and only horror directing contribution.All in all, Madhouse an intriguing must see for its possible comparable look at how much real life Price was injected into Dr. Death by Ken Levison in his screenplay.