History Film / TheSpiralStaircase

* HopeSpot: [[spoiler: Happens twice in the climax, both times concerning the local constible. First, he visits the manor after Albert is revealed, but Albert answers the door and is able to convince him that everything is ok. Then, Helen begins pounding on a window to get his attention, but he assumes that it's from a nearby gate. By the time Helen tries smashing the window with a lamp, he has already left.]]

** The killer, oddly enough, has a small one early on in the movie when watching Helen in front of a mirror, where he imagines her as having no mouth. [[spoiler: This serves as {{Foreshadowing}} for the killers motive, as he sees all disables people as imperfect. Albert even mentions it during his MotiveRant.]]

In 1906 Vermont, Helen ([=McGuire=]) is employed as a live-in maid in the splendid Warren family mansion. The community has been disturbed of late by a SerialKiller who preys specifically on women who have some sort of disability--past victims include a woman with a badly scarred face and a "simple-minded" woman, and the film opens with the killer strangling a woman who has a lame leg. This news is being taken very seriously indeed in the Warren mansion, as Helen is a mute, having fallen into psychosomatic muteness as a child when she saw her parents burned to death in a fire. As soon as the latest murder is reported, everyone starts pleading with Helen to flee the town, especially good-hearted Dr. Perry (Smith), who is in love with Helen.

* BatmanGambit: [[spoiler:The killer executes a number of these in order to make sure Helen is alone. Among these include letting Mrs. Oates steal a bottle of brandy knowing she will get drunk off it, and getting rid of the bottle of ether so Mr. Oates will have to travel to get it.]]

* LoveTriangle: In the backstory between Blanche, Albert, and Stephen. Blanche chose Stephen but isn't too thrilled about it.

Helen ([=McGuire=]) is a maid in the splendid Warren family mansion in early 19th-century New England. The community has been disturbed of late by a SerialKiller who preys specifically on women who have some sort of disability--past victims include a woman with a badly scarred face and a "simple-minded" woman, and the film opens with the killer strangling a woman who has a lame leg. This news is being taken very seriously indeed in the Warren mansion, as Helen is a mute, having fallen into psychosomatic muteness as a child when she saw her parents burned to death in a fire. As soon as the latest murder is reported, everyone starts pleading with Helen to flee the town, especially good-hearted Dr. Perry (Smith), who is in love with Helen.

''The Spiral Staircase'' is a 1946 thriller film directed by Creator/RobertSiodmak, starring Dorothy [=McGuire=], Kent Smith, and George Brent.

Besides Helen, the household consists of cantankerous old Mrs. Warren (Ethel Barrymore), who is bedridden, her ne'er-do-well son Steven Warren, and her stepson Professor Albert Warren (Brent), son of the late Mr. Warren's first wife. The Warren half-brothers don't like each other very much, with serious Albert being regularly irritated by rapscallion Steven, and both brothers being rivals for the hand of Blanche (Creator/RhondaFleming), the lovely secretary to the Warren family. Also present in the house are Mr. Oates (Rhys Williams), the handyman, and his wife Mrs. Oates ([[Film/BrideOfFrankenstein Elsa Lanchester]]), the cook.

[=McGuire=] is Helen, a maid in the splendid Warren family mansion in early 19th-century New England. The community has been disturbed of late by a SerialKiller who preys specifically on women who have some sort of disability--in the past the killer's victims included a woman with a badly scarred face and a "simple-minded" woman, and the film opens with the killer strangling a woman who has a lame leg. This news is being taken very seriously indeed in the Warren mansion, as Helen is a mute, having fallen into psychosomatic muteness as a child when she saw her parents burned to death in a fire. As soon as the latest murder is reported, everyone starts pleading with Helen to flee the town, especially good-hearted Dr. Perry (Smith), who is in love with Helen.

''The Spiral Staircase'' is a 1946 thriller film directed by Robert Siodmak, starring Dorothy [=McGuire=], Kent Smith, and George Brent.

''The Spiral Staircase'' is a 1946 thriller directed by Robert Siodmak, starring Dorothy [=McGuire=], Kent Smith, and George Brent.

* ChekhovsGun: A literal gun, which Mrs. Warren has by her bedside and which a horrified Helen tries but fails to wrest away from her. At the climax Mrs. Warren saves Helen's life by shooting Albert dead with said gun.

Besides Helen, the household consists of cantankerous old Mrs. Warren (Ethel Barrymore), who is bedridden, her ne'er-do-well son Steven Warren, and her stepson Professor Albert Warren (Brent), son of the late Mr. Warren's first wife. The Warren half-brothers don't like each other very much, with serious Albert being regularly irritated by rapscallion Steven, and both brothers being rivals for the hand of Blanche (Rhonda Fleming), the lovely secretary to the Warren family. Also present in the house are Mr. Oates (Rhys Williams), the handyman, and his wife Mrs. Oates ([[Film/BrideOfFrankenstein Elsa Lanchester]]), the cook.

Besides Helen, the household consists of cantankerous old Mrs. Warren (Ethel Barrymore), who is bedridden, her ne'er-do-well son Steven Warren, and her stepson Professor Albert Warren (Brent), son of the late Mr. Warren's first wife. The Warren half-brothers don't like each other very much, with serious Albert being regularly irritated by rapscallion Steven, and both brothers being rivals for the hand of Blanche (Rhonda Fleming), the lovely secretary to the Warren family. Also present in the house are Mr. Oates the handyman and his wife Mrs. Oates, the cook, played by Elsa "Film/BrideOfFrankenstein" Lanchester.

* WhamLine: How Albert is revealed as the killer, after seemingly coming to the rescue of Helen.

* SerialKiller: One that stalks women who have some sort of handicap or deformity.

* OneEyedShot: Used when the killer is stalking both of his victims as well as when he is staring at Helen.