Check into the Sanitarium with Our Top 11 Insane Asylum Horror Films
Steve Barton
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Alone in the Dark
One of the more under-appreciated horror films, Alone in the Dark features an incredible cast including Jack Palance, Donald Pleasence, Martin Landau, Dwight Schultz, Erland van Lidth and Elizabeth Ward, who was voted Best Actress at the 1983 Sitges Film Festival for her role as Lyla Potter. This was the directorial debut of Jack Sholder and also the first film ever released by New Line Cinema. Palance leads a group of criminally insane asylum escapees on a killing spree during a power outage. Determined to kill their new doctor, the nuts on the loose converge on his home, leaving a trail of bodies along the way. Incidentally, the character of Skaggs the Bleeder is seen wearing a hockey mask in Alone in the Dark. As this film was released in 1982, I think we all know another famous character that started sporting a modified Detroit Red Wings hockey mask right around the same time.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
Okay, so this one is a little hard to classify as horror, but there are definitely some intense moments and chilling ideas that are broached in this classic picture. Additionally, horror heavyweights Brad Dourif and Michael Berryman are featured (with Dourif playing a very significant role in the film). One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, of course, revolves around the brief stay of Randall McMurphy (Jack Nicholson) in the Oregon State Hospital (where the movie was actually filmed) and the power struggle that ensues as the dictatorial Nurse Ratched (Louise Fletcher) attempts to maintain control over her once sleepy ward as McMurphy tries to bring the patients back toward true humanity. The nurse’s tactics go from passive-aggressive to downright brutal as the film progresses. A legendary movie that will uplift, entertain and shock you. There’s even a bit of F/X in there as well. Fantastic!
Insanitarium
Jesse Metcalfe (who had been previously famous for his role as John Rowland on “Desperate Housewives,” which gave him the opportunity to roll around with Eva Longoria on a weekly basis… lucky!) stars in this wild film about a man who fakes insanity in order to be institutionalized with the hopes of freeing his sister who is being held at the same asylum against her will. Maybe not the best course of action, but you can see how the plan has possibilities. We come to find out the doctor running this particular operation (the always entertaining Peter Stormare) has some seriously bad intentions in mind. A couple other notable actors that you don’t normally expect to turn up in a horror flick show up as well, including Kevin Sussman (Stuart on “The Big Bang Theory”) and the lovely Olivia Munn. This one goes completely over the top during the climax and is great for a bloody good time!
Anthology film Sanitarium features the work of directors Bryan Ortiz, Bryan Ramirez, and Kerry Valderrama. Malcolm McDowell, Lou Diamond Phillips, John Glover, David Mazouz, Lacey Chabert, Chris Mulkey, and Robert Englund star. The film is available on DVD and digital download December 31, 2013, for an SRP of $27.97.
Synopsis
SANITARIUM is an anthology that consists of three tales based on particular patients of a mental institution. Each tale begins with Dr. Stenson (McDowell), the primary physician at the Sanitarium, commenting on the recent arrival of a new patient. As Dr. Stenson speaks, the individual’s story begins. SANITARIUM explores the different narratives of the insane patients – tales which led to their crazed states of minds.
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