THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE

(1946, dir. Robert Siodmak, 83 min.)

Starring Dorothy McGuire, George Brent, Ethel Barrymore

Maybe this is more of a noir mystery in strict plot terms, and not even a terribly twisty one. But Siodmak's direction transforms it into a Gothic nightmare, full of unsettling family secrets, half-understood insinuations, and sinister hands and eyes creeping in the darkness. Wasn't on my radar AT ALL until it came up as the most-popular 1940s horror I hadn't seen, but I'll be happy to revisit it again.

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