I had first watched the 2000 TV remake of THE SPIRAL STAIRCASE and when I looked it up on IMDb I noticed that there were earlier films with the same title and plot.And so I first watched the original and fell in love with it... and then I moved on to this little gem from the 70's. I must say I really liked it A LOT! Jaqueline Bisset is stunning and the acting here is great. This is true 70's trash so bad its good film. I actually like this one over the original. The only performance I don't care for is the mother's here...in the original Ethel Barrymore played it so well! But still, this is good entertainment! Great way to pass the time!

I was surprised when I learned that "The Spiral Staircase" was a remake of an earlier movie, and that it's been remade since. The movie is actually little that we haven't seen before: disabled - in this case mute - woman (Jacqueline Bisset) suspects that someone is trying to kill her, she moves in with family, and there's eventually a big showdown. And the ending was pretty anticlimactic; at one point, you can basically tell what's going to happen.However, there was one thing that I derived from the movie. Christopher Plummer's character in one scene talks about no tolerance for imperfection. We in the 21st century have taken that to the extreme. We want everyone made up so that they all look the same, we go for style over substance, and more. Then again, I'm probably reading too far into the movie, as it was most likely intended as a straight thriller (although it doesn't really thrill).Anyway, it's a mediocre way to pass time. Also starring Elaine Stritch and John Philip Law (the "Barbarella" angel).

Searching the video store, I saw the cover for this and remembered reading about it. I decided to give it a whirl, because there was nothing else catching my eye at the moment. Jaqueline Bissett plays Helen, a young mute, who is currently staying at the Sherman Institute. The rest of the people in the house are wary of the fact that women with disabilities are being murdered, and a blind woman was killed that day. That night, though, the killer has spotted Helen as his next victim. And with a thunderstorm threatening to kill the power, this killer starts eliminating those at the house, closing in closer and closer to Helen.Does that sound like a good movie? I don't know, I thought so. Well, I was wrong. It's very dull for the first three quarters, with characterization up the wazoo, and a couple of suspicious moments. And, supposedly, it's a mystery of who the killer is--but it's not!! The killer is way too obvious! I don't know if it was just because I knew the motive from reading about the original movie, or if movie was just really bad at concealing the killer's identity. And, this isn't a spoiler, because even the plot summary said it, the killer is Dr. Sherman. But, there are a few holes. First of all, why does the killer kill off people who aren't disabled at the house? Well, the killer's achievements at the house only rank up to two or three, but still, they're all perfectly "normal" people. And why does Steven drag Oates's body outside after he finds it in the foyer? Doesn't that mean that he's an accomplice in something? I don't know, that left me hanging for a while. Still, there are some good things. The last quarter of the movie is quite exciting, with Dr. Sherman chasing Helen around the house. And the movie utilizes her disability well, especially when trying to contact help over the phone. There was a lot of suspense in those scenes. Also, the characters are all quite likable. Mrs. Sherman was very entertaining as the witty mother of the doctor and Steven. And Mrs. Oates was just a very likable character, as the cook. And of course, Helen, played with all innocence and huge doe-eyes by Bissett. Overall, not a great movie, but the final quarter is quite interesting. I have yet to see the original version, though, and I have a feeling that might be better.

The plot summary currently available for this movie is totally incorrect. The viewer has gotten the original film (starring Dorothy McGwire and Ethel Barrymore) mixed up with the television movie starring Jacqueline Bisset and Christopher Plummer. In the remake, Ms. Bisset plays a woman who has become mute because of the trauma of watching her child die in a fire and her husband die trying to rescue the girl--he falls off a ladder and lands on the spokes of the wrought iron fence! She is romantically involved with the doctor who has been treating her. The bad guy in this version is played by Christopher Plummer, who portrays Ms. Bisset's uncle in the film (sorry, can't remember character names). He, not the doctor, as stated in the current viewer summary, is the killer. His father couldn't stand to see physical imperfection or illness and, evidently passed his fetish on to his son--who has added to it the element of psycopathy, leading him to commit numerous murders in his effort to rid the world of imperfect people. Pretty stupid, really, as much as I like Christopher Plummer. I hate to see fine actors lower themselves to appear in productions unworthy of their talents. The original was not quite so far-fetched and much better acted by Dorothy McGwire in the role of the mute.