Well, the film does not make any sense whatsoever: How in the heck did the patients of the asylum get all those elaborate costumes for their strange rituals and such? Since when do asylums keep such clothing? The patients couldn't have ran into town then brought them back, they are way out in the woods without a horse and carriage - it would have taken them days by foot and would have most likely not have gone back to the asylum especially with elaborate costuming. The whole film has them wearing these outfits - so that makes no sense whatsoever! The story is just OK, holds my interest just slightly but the Gothic atmosphere with all the elaborate clothing is eye-candy.Basically the film is about some lunatics that captures the doctors and nurses, has them locked up and tortures them. A man hears about this strange Dr. Tarr (an inmate of the asylum that has taken over the place) and comes to find out more, investigate the place... he is accompanied by a man and his female cousin that are the neighbors of the asylum.4/10

This is a Mexican adaption of the Edgar Allan Poe story 'The System of Dr. Tarr and Professor Fether'. It tells the tale of a journalist who travels to a sanatorium to report on eccentric medical techniques practised there. This is frankly a really bizarre feature. Right from the get go this is odd. It is sort of a horror film yet its atmosphere is almost quirky a lot of the time. The music reflects this by being spectacularly inappropriate throughout. I suppose with a central idea of the lunatics taking over the asylum, the general off-kilter strangeness is imbued in the music and general mood. There is a multitude of oddball characters that feature throughout the picture, culminating in a finale involving menacing chicken people. No, seriously.I guess this movie can best be described as a surrealist film. Seeing as its Mexican and made around the same time as Alejandro Jodorowsky was making movies this makes more sense. There must've been something funny in the Mexican tap water back in the early 70's. So I suppose it will probably appeal more to those who appreciate weird art films rather than anyone after a Gothic horror yarn, which to be honest this film really isn't. While it's certainly a memorably nutty film, it would be remiss to not mention that it's a little rough around the edges as well. It's really a mixture of quite bad film-making with some pretty impressive moments. The overall strangeness is probably ultimately its chief selling point though. So if you have an interest in the bizarre then this certainly will tick a few boxes for you on that score.

It was the grisly demon-possession flick "Alucarda" (1978) that first made me aware of the talents of the late, underrated Mexican director Juan L. Moctezuma. Anxious to see more, I popped in the DVD for Moctezuma's first film, 1973's "The Mansion of Madness" (also, fortunately, on the Mondo Macabro label), and was pleased to discover that it is another winner, although much less disturbing and intense a horror outing than "Alucarda." The film nicely captures and expands Edgar Allan Poe's 1845 short story "The System of Dr. Tarr and Prof. Fether" (one of many that Roger Corman never got around to adapting!), and shows what can happen when the inmates of a madhouse literally take over the asylum. In the film, we make the acquaintance of a young man named Gaston Leblanc who has recently graduated from journalism school in 19th century America, and played by hunky dude Arthur Hansel (who looks a good 20 years too old for the part). Leblanc returns to his French homeland to do a story on a mental institution run by one Dr. Maillard (Claudio Brook, the doctor turned demon slayer in "Alucarda"), whose innovative "soothing system" of letting his inmates run free has been causing quite a stir in medical circles. But shocking surprises await Leblanc as he enters the titular "mansion of madness"....This film, I should say, starts out very strangely, and Maillard's initial tour of his institution may cause some viewers to shake their heads in bewilderment. My advice would be to stick with it, though, as several plot twists serve to both clarify matters and ratchet up the suspense. Novice film director Moctezuma gives the viewer something interesting to look at in virtually every shot, especially toward the picture's conclusion. That banquet sequence is a literal phantasmagoria of oddball characters doing unusual things, the frame filled with hyperkinetic wonder. Kudos also to cinematographer Rafael Corkidi, especially for his stunning work outdoors. A welcome addition to the Poe story here: a romantic subplot of sorts featuring an inmate named Eugenie, played by beautiful Ellen Sherman. And speaking of "beautiful," Susana Kamini, who played the gorgeous Justine in "Alucarda," can be seen in this film as well. Look sharp: There she is, playing the topless inmate on the receiving end of that fishing pole! Opening with a pensive voice-over amongst lovely country scenery and concluding with a seeming homage to--of all people--"Little Caesar"'s Rico Bandello, the picture is a fascinating experience from beginning to end. Thanks again, you Mondo Macabro maniacs!

A stupid rich guy circa about 1800 wants to visit a nearby mental asylum to see how a famous doctor cares for his patients. Despite an initially hostile response, he is soon cordially invited in and given a tour by the good doctor. And, as the doctor shows him about, he talks and talks and talks!!! And as he talks, loonies run amok here and there doing nothing especially productive. While there is SOME action here and there (and some of it quite disturbing), it's amazing how dull and cerebral the whole thing is--lacking life and energy, which is odd for a horror flick. Even a guy who thinks he's a chicken and dresses like one becomes rather tiresome. The further this tour takes the guest, the more disturbing it becomes until ultimately you realize that the inmates have taken over the hospital and are torturing their keepers. Yet again, despite this twist, the film is amazingly lifeless in many places--particularly when it moves very slowly as a bizarre ceremony is taking place or people are just wandering about the set. Only when the workers from the asylum found in a prison cell, starving, does the film have any real impact. Considering this plot, it sure is hard to imagine making it boring, but the people who made this cheap exploitational film have! Now with the same plot and competent writing, acting and direction, this COULD have been an interesting and worthwhile film.You know, now that I think about it, this was the plot of one of the episodes of the original "Star Trek" TV show! You know, the one with "Lord Garth--Master of the Universe" and Kirk and Spock are held prisoner by this madman and his crazed followers.A final note: The film has quite a bit of nudity here and there and includes a rape scene, so be forewarned--it's not for kids. In fact, considering how worthless the film is, it isn't for anyone! However, with the version included in the "50 Movie Pack--Chilling Classics", the print is so incredibly bad that it's hard to see all this flesh due to the print being so very dark.