Karloff gives one of his best performances here, and the film deserves a lot of credit for its thoughtful and humane handling of the subject of mental illness, but the most noteworthy aspect is Anna Lee - the film's true star. Not only does she do an excellent job in her role, but it's extremely refreshing to see such a strong, independent and intelligent female character in a horror film from this era. (There's also a terrific little twist near the movie's end.)

Val Lewton's humanism shines through in Bedlam, the lurid tale of a woman institutionalized in the 18th-Century asylum for daring to speak out against its cruel treatment of patients, especially at the hands of Boris Karloff's apothecary in chief. Despite this being a horror film (or perhaps more of a thriller), the "scary madmen" are actually treated with some measure of sensitivity and grace. Anna Lee plays the heroine's role, and makes me realize Lewton's films frequently have strongly-written female characters leading them. Her Nell is witty but reckless, stubborn but not as brave as she seems, and the test of her moral convictions represents a real character arc. As with many of RKO's horror producer's films, it's not quite what you think you'll get going in.

Very excellent movie! Although, the line at the end lauding the advancement for the care of the mentally ill is ridiculous considering in 1946 Dr. William Freeman was going hog wild with his psychological panacea, the transorbital lobotomy, the massively overrun Danvers State Hospital was at full capacity with over 2,000 patients being cared for by a very limited staff who would do ANYTHING necessary to subdue them, and homosexuality was considered a psychological disorder within the DSM and was treated with aversion therapy (a barbaric, debilitating procedure that is STILL legal in some states today), but I guess that's just medical advancement for ya.