A great black and white thriller full of all the cliches an old house, a thunderstorm, a mute young female would be victim, an unknown serial killer within a small community. Somewhat predictable by today's standards but still entertaining.

A tiny bit tedious and obvious but it's short enough and intriguing enough that it's still tense and enjoyable.

Magnificent mood piece, a precursor of sorts to the Italian giallo film. Suspenseful and well directed.

Beautiful gothic stylization infused with ho-hum performances, ho-hum mystery and ho-hum melodrama. The bulk of the film explores the tensions in the household, while the menace lingers far in the background. The tense climax is welcome, but it's too little, too late. Ethel Barrymore is a hoot and Gordon Oliver is fun. But Dorothy McGuire in the lead is not up to the task of portraying a compelling mute character. It's a shame such fine camerawork is wasted on this rather drab material.

Often compared to Fritz Lang and Alfred Hitchcock, Robert Siodmak was one of the greatest German directors of film noir. "The Spiral Staircase" is a sample of his technical skills, an absorbing horror film set in a haunting (or haunted) mansion, where pretty much everyone could be the serial killer. Sounds familiar but it came first.

this is actually pretty good if you like old movies

The story, dialogue, and acting are all pretty hokey - shallow characterization, fairly predictable twist, and some pretty hammy performances. But the direction is marvelous, with great transitions, camera movements, and framing.

Possibly the first serial killer movie. Not very convincing, though

Stats off with a very eerie and suspensful thirty minutes, but then decides to just stop, and the characters talk with each other for about another thirty minutes until the suspense kicks back in.

Archetypal old dark house thriller, superbly detailed and set during a most convincing thunderstorm. Even though the identity of the villain is pretty obvious, this is a superior Hollywood product.

Breathlessly suspenseful mystery, superbly directed, a real thriller.

Siodmak would go on to become a master of noir with 'The Killers' (1946) and 'Cry of the City' (1948) and you sense the potential here. It's more of a classical mystery, with some gothic touches, but while the who-dun-it elements are just fine many scenes with the female protagonist, mute by trauma, fall flat.

Some nice photography and a handful of imaginative shots break up an otherwise interminable story. The enchanting Rhonda Fleming is woefully underused.

Creepy and visually striking, but kind of forgettable.