The Attic

Plot synopsis:
Emma (Moss) has a strong aversion towards her family's new house, especially the attic. After moving in, she becomes miserable and reclusive. The rest of her family also seems unhappy and unsettled. The situation escalates one day when Emma is in the attic alone. All of a sudden someone who looks exactly like Emma attacks her viciously.
Emma is convinced that someone or something is haunting her, and she refuses to leave her house until she can piece the puzzle together, with the assistance of John Trevor (Lewis), a sympathetic detective. Eventually, Emma suspects her parents of hiding skeletons in the closet from the family's past and practicing magical rituals using symbols Wicca seemingly stole from satanism. As the clues pile up, she discovers that she once had a sister named Beth, who died twelve days after Emma was born. Emma realizes that this identical apparition may actually be Beth returning to life.
Emma witnesses Beth kill her brother, and the police suspect it was really Emma. John Trevor comes to the rescue when Beth is trying to strangle Emma to death and leaves her with a gun. She suspects that her father was to blame and murders both her parents. When the police arrive, Emma threatens "John Trevor", who now claims to be a paramedic, with the gun he gave her. As she points the gun at Trevor, she is really pointing the gun at herself, and when she pulls the trigger, she kills herself.
The police later discuss the incident, and Emma's former psychologist explains that Beth and Trevor were only in her mind. Another officer mentions that the previous owner of the house mysteriously died. The psychologist says that houses do not kill people, but in this case it did. The film ends as new family looks to buy the house. As a young girl about Emma's age explores the attic, "John Trevor", now a real estate agent called Ron, appears behind her and says they will be seeing a lot of each other.

Tags: revenge

Review:
Works if you're in the right mood....
This is NOT a horror film.
Like its "prequel," "The Killing Kind," it's more a psychological study of how nasty parents can really mess up their children's lives, and how ironically nasty life can be.Louise, brilliantly played by the wonderful, under-utilized and now-departed actress Carrie Snodgrass, is a spinster librarian with a hateful, controlling, wheelchair-bound dad played with unashamed evil glee by Ray Milland.
Louise is depressed beyond belief--she's never gotten over the loss of her fiancée who disappeared 19 years ago, or an accident that led to her father being in a wheelchair.
She does anything she can to cope: attempts suicide, masturbates, has a one-night stand, plans vacations she'll never have the courage to take, retires from her job and even takes care of a chimpanzee.
But she's not a balanced person--she constantly fantasizes about rejecting her abusive and mean father and loses track of reality on occasion.
She drinks a little too.
But things seem to be going her way at last when Louise makes a friend out of a co-worker, a sincere young woman who boosts Louise's confidence, and gives her hope, sets her on the road to recovering her self-esteem and her life.But, as in "Carrie," happiness is not in the cards for Louise, and it all comes to an end in a series of ironic surprises, and a stormy conclusion in a creepy attic where unpleasant truths are finally revealed.This is not a horror movie--it's not scary or gory at all.
You have to be in the right mood to enjoy this movie.
You have to be depressed, and feeling hateful, and old, and grief over the loss of someone or something you love to really get into this movie.
You have to feel like the world is an unfair, cruel place to live, and be interested in a movie that confirms your worst fears...the world IS against you!
There are some wonderful moments of black humor--the secret Ray Milland has been hiding about his health is somehow so cruel it's almost funny, and listening to Carrie Snodgrass break out of character and scream is a wonderful experience.
Some of Louise's fantasies show her screaming or acting sly and seductive in that unusual voice of hers, giving just a hint of what Ms. Snodgrass might have delivered had more roles come her way.
Ray Milland's hatred of the "Dicky the chimp" is hilarious, even as it degrades a once great actor in his declining years to be in such a role in, basically, an exploitation film.
But I can't stop laughing when he first sees Dickey..."What in God's name is THAT!??"It's not a great film, and hard to categorize; I have no idea who would have put up money for something like this, let alone how they got the actors they did.
It's more sad than scary, and you really have to be in the right mood to watch a character who's life was pretty rotten almost get better, then fall into a bottomless pit of hopelessness.Or maybe the implication is that Louise went on after this movie, and was able to start her life over, having broken the spell of the past that kept her from moving forward.
A New Perspective.
I remember seeing The Attic on TV when I was 10, and I'll have to admit, it did give me nightmares.
Now I have a different perspective about it.I really agree with the last comment I read.
This film is hard to classify, and in my opinion, could have been so much better.
The two actors, Carrie Snodgress and Ray Milland keep it from being completely unwatchable.
Snodgress does an exceptional job portraying Louise, that she actually makes you feel bad for her.
All through the movie, you almost wish someone would throw her a bone and get her out of that dreadful house.
It isn't really a horror movie, but it does have a creepy feel to it in some places.
Ray Milland's sadistic portrayal of Louise's father,Wendell, contributes to that..
SLOW, BUT INTERESTING.
Louise is a poor lonely middle-aged librarian prone to odd behavior, outrageous daydreams and suicide attempts.
For the last 19 years she has taking care of her abusive wheelchair bound father and hopes beyond hope that her fiancée, who seemingly stood her up at the altar, returns to take her away.
I thought that the story was interesting and in many ways parallels Psycho, there's even a nod in the movie.
The acting is passable and the leads seem to mesh well.
The direction is a bit plain and simple with little or no pizzazz.
The biggest drawback is the music.
Half the time the music distracts you away from the scene and the rest of the time it lulls you to sleep.
Dig that crazy chimp music.
The editing draws many of the scenes out for far too long.
I kept thinking to myself that the story interested me but the script needed to be fleshed out some more and a bit of the fat trimmed coupled with a decent music score and a little vision, they could have pulled off something interesting.I even liked the obvious twists.
It was like a character study and engaging one too.
It was not a horror movie, this movie was more of a case study.
Snodgress's acting is brilliant and she definitely deserved an Oscar for it.
The movie is definitely creepy and depressing, probably the most depressing movie i've seen.
the best part about the movie is that it stays in your head for a long long time.
Makes you think about the other side of parenting and how cruel humans can be.
It does get boring in between, i wont lie about that.
But that can be completely ignored when you look at the movie as a whole.
It is not a Horror movie but if you watch it with concentration, you will get scared.
After the movie has ended too, just thinking about it..
Pretty good story with dull pauses could use a re-make.
Okay, the storyline here is pretty interesting.
Louise is a lonley librarian who is developing a drinking habit which is about to get her fired.
But if anyone has GOOD reason to be sneakin hooch its Louise.
19 years ago she was left at the altar by her true love who she's never heard from since (she calls Missing Persons on a regular basis and they are at a point where they dont think this man EVER existed anywhere but in Louise's mind!).
She lives with her evil nasty belittling father who is in a wheelchair due to an accident he had trying to escape a building Louise set on fire during one of her "Crazys" episodes.
Since then Louise has had to bathe him, feed him and wait on him hand and foot.As you can imagine its a real downer and Louise has even known to slit a wrist or two over it (which her father points out is just to get attention!) Louise makes freinds with a new younger girl at the library and they start a friendship that at least brings Louise a little bit of joy.
Her father cant stand it.
"Where were you?" he likes to yell when she comes home at night.
(He listens to phone calls too.) From the point were Louise is gifted a monkey....yes, a monkey!.....the twists start hitting.
No, the movie moves slowly ...which is unfortunate because all-in-all it IS an interesting story with some cool plot twists.
I really think this movie needs a re-make with quicker pacing and maybe a few more surprises thrown in.
The first time I saw this movie I was a little kid who caught the last 20 minutes on TV and thought "Wow!
What a mind-f***!".
Renting it and watching it in full I now see that most of the action takes place in those last 20 minutes..
Well-done psychological thriller is slow in going, but ultimately a rewarding and emotional character study.Lonely spinster has been living under the eye of her over-bearing father ever since her beloved fiancé disappeared years earlier.
But now that she is gathering her will power, will she be able to take control of her life and uncover the secrets from her past?While many have billed this film as a horror movie, it's really not.
The Attic is a highly tense drama that builds to some good thriller qualities, especially toward its climax.
Director George Edwards creates a feeling of intrigue and mystery with this film, while adding some occasional Gothic touches.
The musical score and theme song also add to the film's over all shut-in mood.The true highlight of this movie though is its great cast.
Veteran actor Ray Milland is appropriate and menacing as the heroine's invalid old father.
His performance is quite good and this stands out as one of his better B film roles.
However the true star of this film is the late Carrie Snodgrass.
Snodgrass gives a stirring, heart-felt performance that makes her character truly sympathetic.
In fact, she is so good in her role that she gives the entire film a bit of a solemn, moving note.
This is perhaps one of Snodgrass's best roles ever.The Attic has became a some what lost film over the years and it shouldn't be.
It's a rare thriller that actually reaches an emotional level with its audience.*** out of ****.
Was sad to hear that Carrie Snodgress passed away.
Wonder if she had a drinking problem like Louise.
I loved her in "The Attic."  I was kinda hoping for a remake of The Attic.
Alot of people did not like this movie, but I thought it was great.
Ray Milland and Carrie were great.
Gotta love Dickey!
But it is what it is...rest in peace Carrie!.
Great movie!!.
I enjoyed this drama.
It is a little slow moving but is intriguing nonetheless.
The music is a little awkward, but the acting is very good and the movie kept my interest throughout.
The settings and background were also interesting.
It's not the best movie I have ever seen but it is better than most..
Blame the chimp!.
THE ATTIC starts off well.
The somewhat dreary story is helped greatly by the two main actors and there's a semblance of a character study going on here but the film goes downhill fast when Carrie Snodgress' character buys a monkey.
Not one of those cute little monkeys.
She buys a real big chimpanzee!!!This sudden plot device basically kills the movie.
It's just not conceivable for a woman like the one Snodgress plays, who has a hard time doing anything because of her domineering father, for her to, out of the blue, buy a chimpanzee.
I mean, come on!
Slow plot, but overall not a bad movie...
Plot is a little slow Storyline varies too much, too many scenes that have nothing to do with the actual story.
Some of the acting is not that great, but this is a 70's movie so it's about par for the course.
Not too bad of a movie overall....
The Attic.
This was an okay movie.
It was boring in instances that I had to watch this movie for a third time because I had fell asleep on it for the first two times.
It is not that really scary at all, but it is an average film that is watchable..
i gotta agree with gridoon....
i was bored off my a**!!!now i'm a MAJOR "b" horror fan and i love thrillers and 60s phycho-thrillers (and this tripe tries to do all three genres) but this was truly awful.
you KNOW it's gotta be bad.
i even gave it three (yes three) tries and i still have not finished all the way through - i keep dozing off!i got this on a double dvd with crawlspace (1986 w/ that wonderful madman klaus kinski!!) and THAT was worth the 7 bucks i paid.
sad to say that although ray miland was wonderfully disturbing as the nasty, selfish father, the attic will probably never get played again....
The monkey had better acting range....
A lonely librarian (Snodgress) spends her life attending to her crippled, and slightly insane father (Milland) who keeps her subservient to his will.
A couple of fantasy scenes where she imagines murdering him in a variety of ways are the only break in the dullness that is this film.
A hammy performance from Milland and an over the top performance from Snodress lead to a slightly shocking climax that is too little too late to save this stinker..
A bore..
Slow, odd film that drags and plods (I mean really PLODS) along to its disappointing climax.
You may expect some sort of punchline at the end, but there is none.
Both Milland and Snodgress give awkward performances; in fact, the film's weirdness may actually be the only thing it has going for it.
The generally atmospheric score has some absurd parts (like the music that plays during the first appearance of a monkey), and there is a truly awful fantasy scene involving....a gorilla.
poor dickey!!.
This movie is amazingly boring if you aren't in the mood to watch it.
the build up to the climax takes up almost the entire movie and when it does, slightly disturbing, yes, but completly predictable.
all in all an average fair movie for the late 70's.
Am I the only one that got the message in this movie?.
In my opinion, this movie was to show how destructive a manipulator aka.
Louise's father can be.
All of louise's problems, drinking, fantasizing, etc.
was brought on by her father's vicious criticisms, lies and control!It has been a while since I have seen the movie, but if you all remember, Louise's father was not actually paralyzed.
Also, as you find out at the end of the movie, the fiancé and the chimp were both killed BY HER FATHER!
Louise is the victim in this movie.
Everything she loved and loved her was viciously ripped away from her by her sick-minded lying,controlling father.
When she found out her father was not paralyzed and the past 19 years of her life was under his complete control, she lost it and pushed him down a hill......wouldn't you??
I really feel like this movie was trying to show society that mental abuse is REAL and should be taken SERIOUSLY!.
An ugly and disturbing film.
This film I found to be very dark and disturbing and yes at times, rather nasty, although the nastiness is implied, not really on screen (no gore but the thought of a middle aged woman masturbating really plays with you).
This movie was dark for all the right reasons and really is a good story if you don't mind being left chilled.
This movie really isn't a horror film but it really shouldn't be watched right before going to sleep or if YOU yourself is rather depressed.
It will play with you.
But, it was a good thought provoking and disturbing movie.
I am wondering if this film was a made for television film or perhaps just made to look dark and grainy for the right reasons.
Excellent film making..
An interesting character study.
I found this movie interesting.
Cheap thrillers or horror movies are not for me, and this movie is neither.
It is a very realistic character study and therefore rather depressing, as reality unfortunately often is.
It also shows how luck can play an important role in how happy or unhappy we can become.
Louise was a normal, happy girl that bad luck transformed into a miserable woman, unable to control her life.
She lost the man she loved at their wedding day and then was obliged to serve her crippled father, out of remorse, because she was made to believe that she was responsible.
She can only imagine ways of escape or revenge, but never takes any real action to free herself, remorse is there to prevent her.
But her father, Wendell?
He is healthy and has money, so he could live an easy and happy life.
He kills his daughter's husband to be, and spends most of his hours in a wheelchair, spying on her, abusing her verbally, forbidding her any joy, and is tied with her in a life of misery and contempt.
He is crazy alright, an extreme case of control freak who should be straight jacketed long ago.
His punishment comes too late and when Louise discovers the hidden truth in the attic, it is also too late for her to make a new start, she practically cannot move from this terrible environment, to which her bad luck has condemned her to live all her life.
It is very sad, but cases such as this, in various percentages of intensity, happen quite often around us.
So this movie, in its extremity, is a reminder not to allow anyone to control us and always fight for or individual rights.
So I call it a "constructionally" depressing movie.
Both Carrie Snodgress and Ray Milland are superb in their respective roles.
I wish that we could see Carrie in happier roles, because she was really something.
As for Ray Milland, he had so much vitality that even from his wheelchair he could liven up every scene he was in.
Although his role is hateful, he manages to provide a much needed comic relief at times, through the absurdity of his behavior to his victim.
And I do not agree that he is degrading himself by playing such roles.
From the beginning of his long career, and unlike many other "stars", he was never afraid to play villains, not giving any consideration to the possible damage to his "image".
He was always a true professional and a fine actor, who chose to share with his public all the phases of his life, daring to reveal the changes that time has brought to him.