Lady in a Cage

"What happens in this elevator is not for the weak - it is, perhaps, not even for the strong!"

1964 1h 34m EN

😐

6.2

MID

★6.2TMDB · 80

DramaMysteryThrillerHorror

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A woman trapped in a home elevator is terrorized by a group of vicious hoodlums.

“What happens in this elevator is not for the weak - it is, perhaps, not even for the strong!”

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Where to watch · US

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Cast

Olivia de Havilland
Mrs. Cornelia Hilyard
James Caan
Randall Simpson O'Connell
Jennifer Billingsley
Elaine
Rafael Campos
Essie
William Swan
Malcolm Cornelius Hilyard
Jeff Corey
George L. Brady Jr. aka Repent
Ann Sothern
Sade
Charles Seel
Mr. Paul (uncredited)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Walter Grauman
Writers: Luther Davis
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

ERA

Did you know

62 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

CRAFT

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Walter Grauman, shot by Lee Garmes. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by Paul Glass. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Leon Barsha shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Olivia de Havilland and James Caan and Jennifer Billingsley carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "What happens in this elevator is not for the weak - it is, perhaps, not even for the strong!".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0058283 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Walter Grauman directs. Lee Garmes behind the camera. Paul Glass scores. Leon Barsha cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

162 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
2Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
3Directed by Walter Grauman, shot by Lee Garmes. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
4Original score by Paul Glass. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
5Editor Leon Barsha shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
6Olivia de Havilland and James Caan and Jennifer Billingsley carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "What happens in this elevator is not for the weak - it is, perhaps, not even for the strong!".
8IMDB entry: tt0058283 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
9Only 80 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

The technical file

Cinematography: Lee Garmes
Original score: Paul Glass
Editing: Leon Barsha
Production design: Rudolph Sternad
Costume design: Edith Head
Makeup / hair: Wally Westmore
Runtime: 94 min · 1h 34m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: Lady in a Cage (1964)

Also by

Walter Grauman

Trailers & featurettes

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Community reviews

What people are saying

John Chard2017-10-26
★ 5/10
Cage Rage! Lady in a Cage is directed by Walter Grauman and written by Luther Davis. It stars Olivia de Havilland, Jeff Corey, James Caan, Ann Sothern, Jennifer Billingsley and Rafael Campos. Music is by Paul Glass and cinematography by Lee Garmes. If you trawl for reviews of this film you will find pretty much all the cinematic words used to describe a non big budgeted mainstream film that many love. Re: Cult, Camp, Schlock and etc, what ultimately transpires with Lady in a Cage is a film that everybody should understand why some love and some hate it. One film lovers camp schlocky classic is another one's irritatingly over acted bore. I'm close to being in the latter camp. It start off so well, the Paramount logo in cage stripes, a jarring score, a dead dog in the road and superb opening credits that segue into in your face fast cuts. Then story pitches wealthy Cornelia Hilyard as being trapped in a elevator cage in her home (she's recovering from a broken hip see), being all alone she's forced to use the alarm system, which brings into play unsavoury and unstable characters to blight and torment home and woman both. The big message beating at the pic's black heart is so heavily handled by the makers it ends up boorish, rendering shock factor as zero. Come the mid-point the overacting on show by all - including the once magnificent de Havilland - is almost unwatchable. In fact much of it ends up being laughable, so as one is meant to feel repulsion at the stink infecting the human race, one is instead pondering the implausibilities of it all. There's a scene where Cornelia should simply push her chief tormentor out of the cage, but no!, the over cooked screenplay wants to cram in a load more daft human foibles before reaching its finale. We even have a case where two characters in the play, one a key player in proceedings, don't have their fates revealed. Not in a crafty cliffhanger way, but in a lazy forgetful piece of hackdom. You have to say its effective because it draws you in with its unpleasantness - both as an observation on the human condition and as poor film making - so much so you have to stay with it to the end. Perhaps that is job done, then? But really it's one that this viewer personally could not recommend at all. 5/10

Production companies