The Dark at the Top of the Stairs (1960) Queer Film A-

The Dark at the Top of the Stairs
DIRECTOR: Delbert Mann
Robert Eyer has a few lovely moments as Sonny Flood, the little gay boy who can’t wait to show his uncle Morris (Frank Overton) his picture book of silent movie stars in gay playwright William Inge’s play The Dark at the Top of the Stairs. This beautiful adaptation, directed by Delbert Mann in his interim period between Paddy Chayefsky’s slice-of-life realism and Doris Day’s comedy-romance, from a great script by Harriet Frank Jr. and Irving Ravetch, boasts superb performances by Robert Preston as his dad Rubin, Dorothy McGuire as his mom Cora, Shirley Knight as his sister Reenie, Eve Arden as his aunt Lotte and, above all, Angela Lansbury as Mavis Pruitt, the owner of the local beauty salon who has always loved Rubin.

Cinematography by Harry Stradling.

Warner Bros.

STREAMING: “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs” is unavailable for streaming. However, the DVD can be purchased at Amazon.

https://thebrownees.net/88-queer-films-made-under-the-hays-code-1934-1968/
https://thebrownees.net/110-queer-films-from-the-new-hollywood-1968-1980/
https://thebrownees.net/the-great-cinematographers-of-hollywoods-golden-age/
The Group (1966) Queer Film. A Lost Opportunity. (C) – TheBrownees
The Picture of Dorian Gray and Queer Cinema – TheBrownees
A Streetcar Named Desire and Queer Cinema Insights – TheBrownees
Johnny Guitar (1954) Queer Film B – TheBrownees
Auntie Mame (1958) Queer Film B- TheBrownees
My Fair Lady (1964) Queer Film. Cukor’s Late-Career Triumph A+ – TheBrownees

RETURN TO THE HOME PAGE

Popular Articles

TheBrownees Ranks the 145 Greatest Horror Movies, 1920 to 2026.

TheBrownees Ranks the 145 Greatest Horror Movies, 1920 to 2026.

by | Apr 1, 2026 | , ,

Spanning over a century of filmmaking, and tracing the gamut from slasher to psychological to supernatural, TheBrownees ranks the 135 greatest horror movies from 1920 to 2026. The top 15 are: Psycho, Midsommar, The Exorcist, The Shining, Alien, The Road, Dead Ringers, Take Shelter, Under the Skin, Carrie, Halloween, Rosemary’s Baby, The Substance, Hereditary and Don’t Look Now. Directors Tod Browning, Robert Eggers, Roman Polanski, George A. Romero and James Whale are each listed three times. Fourteen directors are represented twice – Ari Aster, John Carpenter, Wes Craven, Zach Cregger, David Cronenberg, Brian De Palma, Coralie Fargeat, Alfred Hitchcock, Tobe Hooper, Jordan Peel, Ken Russell, Steven Spielberg, Jacques Tourneur and Robert Wise. Fargeat, is one of five female directors on the list and the only one to be represented twice. The others are fellow French director Julia Ducoumau, British director Rose Glass and American filmmakers Kathryn Bigelow and Karyn Kusama. Be afraid! Be very afraid!

Subscribe for the latest reviews right in your inbox!

Subscribe to the Blog