A friendly, successful suburban teacher and father grows dangerously addicted to cortisone, resulting in his transformation into a household despot.
Directed by Nicholas Ray
husband wife relationship
paranoia
drug addiction
hallucination
family relationships
hospital
drugs
mental illness
schoolteacher
cortisone
verbal abuse
family life
father son relationship
personality change
mood swing
Trailer
IMDB
N/A
Cast
James Mason
Ed Avery
Barbara Rush
Lou Avery
Walter Matthau
Wally Gibbs
Robert F. Simon
Dr. Norton
Christopher Olsen
Richie Avery
Roland Winters
Dr. Ruric
Rusty Lane
Bob LaPorte
Rachel Stephens
Nurse
Kipp Hamilton
Pat Wade
Virginia Carroll
Mrs. Jones (uncredited)
Renny McEvoy
Mr. Jones (uncredited)
Dee Aaker
Joe (uncredited)
Crew
Nicholas Ray
Director
Richard Maibaum
Screenplay
David Raksin
Original Music Composer
James Mason
Producer
Richard Maibaum
Story
Clifford Odets
Additional Writing
James Mason
Additional Writing
Nicholas Ray
Additional Writing
Popular Reviews
55 reviews
Bryce
8.0★ · 10/16/25
Pure nuclear family insanity. James Mason's character becomes a psycho after he is given a notice that he is on spared time.
He worked himself to deaths door to keep the 1950s squeaky clean nuclear family and he decides to scrape all of that away after he is prescribed cortisone.
Ray does a great job at portraying the fall of Mason's character and flipping this from a family drama to a horror movie in its last act. Mason becomes controlling and gripping of his family berating his wife and son for them not being good enough.
Even saying "GOD WAS WRONG"
Pure nuclear family insanity. James Mason's character becomes a psycho after he is given a notice that he is on spared time.
He worked himself to deaths door to keep the 1950s squeaky clean nuclear family and he decides to scrape all of that away after he is prescribed cortisone.
Ray does a great job at portraying the fall of Mason's character and flipping this from a family drama to a horror movie in its last act. Mason becomes controlling and gripping of his family berating his wife and son for them not being good enough.
Even saying "GOD WAS WRONG"
Lucien WD
6.0★ · 05/12/25
Literally me when i eat too many sweets
Literally me when i eat too many sweets
Ethan
Nicholas Ray. One of the best to ever do it.
Nicholas Ray. One of the best to ever do it.
Ethan
Nicholas Ray. One of the best to ever do it.
Nicholas Ray. One of the best to ever do it.
Kubquik
10.0★ · 12/29/24
What a horrid watch. This puts you right in the house with them
What a horrid watch. This puts you right in the house with them
