romanorum1 In the opening we hear eerie music and see finger-painted daisies in blood on walls and on a door. The title produces an animated bloody drop. Newspaper headlines scream bloody murder. We know we will see a horror movie, not a monster feature, but a psychological mystery. Fourteen year old Ellen Hardy was said to have walked in on her much younger siblings George (aged six) and Mandy (aged four), as they – covered in blood – observed the butchered bodies of their parents. Ellen went to an orphanage while the younger children were sent to an insane asylum in Toronto. Later in the film we will learn that each of the younger siblings has accused the other of the double murders. Memories seem a little fuzzy.The feature begins on Vancouver Island where Ellen (Stella Stevens) has grown up into a very attractive woman (!) and is living as a companion with her future mother-in-law, dizzy and alcoholic Gladys Armstrong (Shelley Winters). Ellen is engaged to Sam (Skip Ward), Glady's stepson. At the ten minute mark Ellen receives chilling correspondence from Toronto in the mail. After she arrives in Toronto, Ellen is told by Dr. Kincaid (Lloyd Haynes) that the grown up children George (aged eighteen, Michael Burns) and Mandy (aged sixteen, Barbara Sammeth) are considered sane and are eligible for discharge. Dr. Kincaid further tells Ellen that Mandy had told him that jealousy of their older sister caused the deaths of their parents. Now the teenagers have need of an older adult supporter, and Ellen has been awarded custody. She is a bit hesitant, as she does not want to jeopardize her present situation. In the end Ellen does agree to take in the teens but tells them to keep tight-lipped about their past. Furthermore, Ellen says that she has made up a story about a nonexistent and weird "Uncle Harry." After the introductions are made at the Armstrong mansion Mandy tells Ellen that her brother and she will need a "mad room" (besides a bedroom) where they can be alone to think and wind down. Ellen decides on an upstairs general study at the end of the hall. Gladys' however, has declared the locked study to be off-limits to anybody but her. Ellen gives Mandy the keys anyway. Meanwhile George is attracted to the good-looking and slender black housekeeper Chris (Carol Cole), who is in her mid-twenties. Eventually, Gladys catches Mandy in the mad room and gets very angry. She confronts Ellen, who is forced to tell her the truth about her brother and sister. Before she retires for the evening, Gladys implies that Ellen's situation has permanently changed. Later that night, Gladys is found hacked to death and, as before, George and Mandy suspect each other of the murder. Meanwhile Ellen grows more and more unhinged. She tells her siblings to think that nothing has happened and that she has a cover-up plan. Meanwhile the family dog Major, who likes more than "SNAUSAGES," has found the body and has taken and hidden Gladys' severed left hand.There is a woman's social luncheon at the Armstrong residence. Ellen has made up a story that Gladys was unable to attend as she had to leave town. Mrs. Racine (Beverly Garland) tells the women that her two-timing husband Armand has taken a trip with Gladys and that everyone knows about his reputation. Note Ellen's lips very carefully when she hears this, as this is a possible way out of a prickly situation. A little later, Mrs. Racine runs upstairs to the bathroom where she locks herself in and attempts suicide by slicing her wrists.SUPER SPOILER ALERT: Ellen is soon seen disposing of Gladys' body into a scenic canyon waterway; the tale told is that Gladys must have accidentally fallen into the river. Back at the house, Major is seen by Ellen carrying Gladys' severed hand in its mouth. Totally deranged, Ellen trails the dog into the basement where she hacks it to death as Sam happens to show up. Ellen says "Forgive them" and looks at Sam bewilderingly as the end credits roll.The cast leads are as great as they are well-known: Shelley Winters and Stella Stevens. Winters had been in movies since the 1940s, and had a nice role in "A Place in the Sun" (1951). Supporting actors also do well: Beverly Garland and Lloyd Haynes. Garland delivers a nice cameo as Mrs. Racine while Haynes also had an appearance as Dr. Kincaid; he gained fame from TV's "Room 222" (1969-1974). Michael Burns and Barbara Sammeth more than adequately keep us guessing, but this movie belongs to Stella Stevens, who at age thirty-three is at her height. Extremely appealing, Ms. Stevens of Hot Coffee, Mississippi, delivers a solid performance as the unbalanced older sister. She had acted in "L'il Abner" (1959), "The Nutty Professor" (1963), and in many TV series. The atmosphere of "The Mad Room" is eerie, but had the top folks not messed with the final product, the film would have vastly improved. More development about the mad room would have helped. As it is, the movie is still sufficiently creepy.

adriangr I've finally seen this movie again after years of just having a faint memory of it, so I've now got to decide if it lived up to my memory...well it pretty much does. The story concerns Stella Stevens as Ellen, a young woman who's impending marriage is interrupted by news that her younger brother and sister are being released from an asylum where they were committed after the murder of both their parents. Now considered sane, they are handed over into Ellen's custody, despite her misgivings, and the three of them move into the home of Ellen's fiancée's mother in law, played by Shelley Winters, which in turn gives HER major misgivings. And this being a horror film, it isn't long before there's a new murder...So what still works is the general sense of unease, mostly generated by great performances by the two younger children, played by Michael Burns and Barbara Sammeth. They portray just the right amount of inscrutability, and keep you guessing as to their actual mental stability! Stella Stevens plays Ellen with lots of wide eyed exasperation which suits the role well, and Shelley Winters does her usual job of playing an alcoholic floozy as the landlady/mother-in-law. The overall tone of the story is well handled, and the climax still works. Gore is low but a couple of bloody scenes still stand out, and the best part is still what happens when a dopey dog sniffs out a dead body - great fun. All in all it's a great compact little thriller with some very good performances...check out the ladies charity party when one of the visitors gets a little too drunk - great cameo here by Beverley Garland - which ends in unexpected tragedy that none of the main characters saw coming! I'd love to see this get an official DVD release, but it seems unlikely, and it's hardly ever shown on TV any more either...what a waste, as this film could be entertaining dozens of new fans or just nostalgia buffs who fancy a bit of twitchy suburban horror from 1969

Lovetvshows From the opening credits this film gives off a creepy feeling. You are never quite sure which character is trustworthy. Stella Stevens gives the right amount of instability in her performance of a woman who is unsure of her future. The younger siblings, played by Michael Burns and Barbara Sammeth, are equally as creepy. This is a must have film for people who like suspenseful movies with minimal gore. As another reviewer noted I am surprised that this movie has not been released on DVD. It would be interesting to have a commentary by Stella Stevens. PS: The writers of To Die For with Nicole Kidman must have been fans of this film, since the opening credits are similar to The Mad Room's credits.

richardchch Coming late in the 60's cycle of mature star shockers, Shelley Winters (who sounds as if she did some of her scenes in one take) and Stella Stevens square off in this watchable B that would have gone straight to video these days. Features a mutt with a taste for more than just Shmackos and worth seeing for the riveting cameo by Beverley Garland as the scorned wife drunk at a society party, but basically Stella's the whole show. Lots of zoom camerawork and 60s wigs! Ends suddenly in the best traditions! Perfect double feature with 'The Big Cube'! 6/10