Edgar Allan Pooh . . . America cared enough for the mentally challenged to erect and staff sprawling state hospitals just for them, as painstakingly documented here in THE SNAKE PIT (an unfortunate title, if there ever was one). In this 21st Century, my native state has declared war on patients such as THE SNAKE PIT's "Virginia Stuart Cunningham," bull-dozing hundreds of acres of such facilities (including the ones in BOTH of my home towns) to make way for shopping malls and luxury condominium projects, while replacing these once-packed community job centers with a mere handful of tiny, ramshackle "group homes" (many of which turn out to be ill-equipped, under-staffed illegal scams siphoning off taxpayer funds while endangering their resident patients with sub-standard food, poor security, counter-productive treatments, and ineffective care). This neglect literally kills tens of thousands of U.S. Citizens every year now, many if not most of whom would have been cured and saved 70 years ago in "snake pits" such as Mrs. Cunningham's "Juniper Hill State Hospital." Sure, demolishing all of these hospitals across out land has over-stuffed our prisons while freeing up a little more taxpayer money for government graft. By the same token, just think of how much more swill will fill that pig trough if they bull-doze all the state universities!

krocheav Here is a rare thing in Hollywood at anytime, let alone 1948. "The Snake Pit" pulls few punches when it comes to some tough story telling. I often wondered why, after so many years of hearing good reports about this film, I never seemed able to catch this drama...not in theatres, on TV, or on video. I also imagine that films dealing with mental breakdowns might have been overlooked in many cinemas ~ as perhaps being too difficult to sell to a fickle public.'Snake Pit' is based on a semi-autobiographical novel by Mary Jane Ward, who also served as technical adviser on the film adaption. Oscar nominated screenplay writer/poet: Millen Brand, who along with his other published works addressing issues within mental institutions, adds an air of sincere authenticity to this, at times confronting movie. Two Other screenplay writers were also involved, which could explain the occasional nod toward clichés regards some of the institution staff. But these are very minor issues, and many may not even regard this as being the case. It's the performances that make this movie so astounding. Never would I have expected that Olivia De Haviland could turn in such a convincing performance, given that it's such a difficult character to portray - she is remarkable. Seems that Director: Anatole Litvak made sure all his cast attended special visits to mental health institutions for a total understanding of the roles they were dealing with. This is certainly evident, with so many excellent cast members scoring with searing interpretations. London born Leo Genn, (Mr Starbuck - Moby dick) is just right as the kindly psychiatrist looking to give his professional best to those under his charge. His casting is most interesting for this American production, and adds hugely to it's success. Genn, a qualified barrister before turning to an acting career, served as prosecutor for the British army during the Nazi war crimes trials at the dreaded Belsen concentration camp. Twice Oscar nominated Director of Photography: Leo Tover (A.K.F. The Heiress '49 ~ The Day The Earth Stood Still '51) makes sure every grueling moment is superbly captured on glorious black and white film. Kiev born Director, Anatole Litvak has given us several thought provoking classics in his impressive career, notably: The Amazing Dr Clitterhouse '38 ~ All That Heaven Allows '40 ~ and a favorite of mine, Act Of Love with Kirk Douglas in '53. He wins again with "The Snake Pit"Also working hard to involve us was Multi Award Winning Art Director: Lyle R. Wheeler, famous for:- Le Miserables '53 ~ The King and I '56, and Where The Side Walk Ends '50. The Oscar nomination for the screen play of 'The Snake Pit', was shared with Hungarian Frank Partos (The Uninvited '44 ~ Stranger on the Third Floor '40). Alfred Newman's music score was up to his usually high dramatic standard.The Fox Hollywood Gold series DVD release I bought, has good sharp images and sound. It makes for a recommended addition to any library, especially for those who understand how to 'read' the quality aspects of 40s classics.

Putzberger "The Snake Pit" is a 2-hour infomercial for the then-budding (in 1948) field of psychoanalysis. Its view of mental illness was probably very enlightened for the time but seems positively quaint and, really, rather sexist by modern standards. Still, it features an excellent performance by Olivia de Havilland as a woman committed to an state mental hospital. Olivia resorts to histrionics in only a couple of scenes, and elsewhere finds many different ways to play a character who is not quite "right" - she'll be tired and dull-witted one moment, agitated and demanding the next, compassionate and troubled the next. In short, her character is schizophrenic, but she manages to make her sympathetic and complex without being pathetic. The pathos is left to the other patients in the asylum -- every character actress in Hollywood is granted a bit of screen time, and they all make the most of it. The best is the old lady who keeps a running commentary about how sick all her fellow inmates are -- she's funny enough to be a bit player in a Marx Brothers movie, but here she's quite disturbing.Still, to enjoy Livvy and the loony ladies, you have to endure a pretty contrived plot. Virginia, as played by Olivia, starts having psychotic episodes shortly after she marries the most saintly man on Earth, Robert (played by the justly forgotten Mark Stevens). After Virginia committed, the most patient psychoanalyst in history, Dr. Mark Kik, begins piecing together the reasons for her breakdown on the assumption that understanding the source of her disorder will be the best way to cure it. Hence "The Snake Pit" is structured like a detective story, and the mystery, when revealed, isn't all that satisfying (although it does leave open the possibility that Virginia was bored senseless by her stiff of a husband). Still, the filmmakers are to be commended for their indictment of the mental-health system as brutal and inhumane. (And in truth, they make a far better case against it than "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest" three decades later.) One wishes they hadn't been quite so blinkered by then-current prejudices, which maintained that poor mothering is the source of all evil and a woman needs a healthy relationship with a man to be rational, but on balance, "The Snake Pit" is a pretty brave film.

dougdoepke Let's hope clinical conditions have improved in the last 60 years. Because, if Virginia (de Havilland) wasn't crazy going in, she will be after staying there. Those day-room scenes are genuinely unnerving. The patients mill around like berserk billiard balls, each in an enclosed world, pursued by their own internal demons. Then there's Hester's (Betsy Blair) frozen stare that chilled me as a kid and still does. What terrible psychic injury is behind that fearful silence, and who will help overcome the unspoken torment.Yes, it's also a case for reform, but an effective one without being preachy. Hundreds of the afflicted are warehoused around an over-worked staff. No wonder nurses like Davis (a great Helen Craig) become petty tyrants, trying to keep some order. Sure, Dr. Kik (Genn) is idealized and so in her own way is Virginia. At first I thought that was nothing more than typical Hollywood pandering. But now I see the two as providing needed hope, given negative opinions of the day. With humane care there is hope for these folks. That's the point of the dance—some kind of normalcy struggling to come out. At the same time, it all comes together in that gut-wrenching "Goin' Home"— something like the choral expression of a human basic. Okay, probably some of the emotional load has caught me up. But not everything is roses. Mark Steven's understanding hubby really does go too far. Some mixed feelings about Virginia's chances would add a needed dimension. Also, the unprofessional finger-wagging looks contrived and unimaginative. I'm sure too that Kik's Freudianizing is subject to debate. And truth be told, it comes across as pretty facile. Nonetheless, the movie's well structured for overall impact. And thanks be to TCF for the supporting players who remain vivid and impressive. So, whatever the drawbacks, the movie still packs a humane message within a dramatic punch. One that can still be felt, even six decades later.