Stonehearst Asylum 2014

No one is what they seem.

6.844 / 10   1352 vote(s)
PG-13
Thriller Mystery Horror

An Oxford Medical School graduate takes a position at a mental institution and soon becomes obsessed with a female mental patient, but he has no idea of a recent and horrifying staffing change.

Homepage http://www.stonehearstasylum.com
Release Date 2014-10-23
Runtime 1h 52m
Directors Brad Anderson, Thomas Yatsko, Carlos Bodelón, Mark Roper, Katie Roper, Sylvia Asenova
Producers Mel Gibson, Bruce Davey, Mark Amin, René Besson, Avi Lerner, Mark Gill, Vicki Christianson, David Higgins, Christa Campbell, Cami Winikoff, Lati Grobman, Lonnie Ramati
Writers Joe Gangemi, Edgar Allan Poe

We're all mad Dr. Newgate. Some are simply not mad enough to admit it.

Stonehearst Asylum (AKA: Eliza Graves) is directed by Brad Anderson and adapted to screenplay by Joe Gangemi. It's loosely based on an Edgar Allan Poe short story. It stars Kate Beckinsale, Jim Sturgess, David Thewlis, Ben Kingsley, Michael Caine, Jason Flemyng and Brendan Gleeson. Music is by John Debney and cinematography by Thomas Yatsko.

Stonehearst Asylum - Is nothing as it seems?

For his latest foray into the horror mystery realm, director Anderson provides a film that is away from conventionality's. The horror here is the blurry lines between sanity and insanity, and it has plenty of tricks and dark humour up its sleeves as well. You don't have to be a rocket scientist to figure out quite early on what is going on at Stonehearst, the makers leave enough clues, but as the ungodly treatments show their hands, and the caustic observations on mental health and the treatment of such are made, there's a strong mystery element booming out of the screen.

Naturally this is a tale full of weird, wonderful and scary characters, and with that comes equal helpings of brutality and tenderness. The key characters are very Poesque, all magnificently framed by the Gothic surroundings (where the design department have worked wonders), while Yatsko's photography is gorgeous or chilly as required. Cast come up trumps, the right blend of Gothic ham and emotionally driven portrayals. Savaged by many critics upon release, it has risen above that to gain a deserved fan base, the word of mouth on the street crucially preparing newcomers for the tone of the play. 7/10

John Chard