How Awful About Allan
A Tense Psychological Thriller
1970 | 74m | English
Popularity: 0.4 (history)
| Director: | Curtis Harrington |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Henry Farrell |
| Staring: |
| After an eight-month stay in a mental hospital, a tormented man comes home to live with his sister; but a mysterious boarder may be trying to kill him. | |
| Release Date: | Sep 22, 1970 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Curtis Harrington |
| Writer: | Henry Farrell |
| Genres: | Horror, TV Movie, Thriller |
| Keywords | based on novel or book, car crash, house fire, blindness, mental hospital, brother sister relationship |
| Production Companies | Aaron Spelling Productions, ABC |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $0
Budget: $0 |
| Updates |
Updated: Jan 29, 2026 Entered: Apr 27, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Anthony Perkins | Allan |
| Julie Harris | Katherine |
| Joan Hackett | Olive |
| Kent Smith | Raymond |
| Robert H. Harris | Dr. Ellins |
| Molly Dodd | Inmate |
| Billy Bowles | Harold Dennis |
| Bill Erwin | Dr. Ames |
| Jeannette Howe | Katherine - Child |
| Kenneth Lawrence | Allan - Child |
| Trent Dolan | Eric |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Curtis Harrington | Director |
| Henry Farrell | Novel, Teleplay |
| Fleet Southcott | Director of Photography |
| Richard W. Farrell | Editor |
| Tracy Bousman | Art Direction |
| Ken Swartz | Set Decoration |
| Robert Harris Sr. | Costume Design |
| Jerrie Woods | Costume Design |
| Ted Coodley | Makeup Artist |
| Norman Henry | Executive In Charge Of Production |
| Jim Lane | Production Manager |
| Joe Lombardi | Special Effects |
| Laurence Rosenthal | Original Music Composer |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| George Edwards | Producer |
| Aaron Spelling | Executive Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
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| 2024 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 2 |
| 2024 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 3 |
| 2024 | 6 | 5 | 12 | 2 |
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| 2024 | 9 | 4 | 7 | 2 |
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| 2024 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 2 |
| 2024 | 12 | 4 | 8 | 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 |
| 2025 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
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| 2025 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 2025 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| 2025 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2025 | 12 | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| 2026 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Trending Position
Pretty decent moody, intense, creepy psychological thriller with two of my favourite thespians in that department--Anthony Perkins and Julie Harris. It's a tad claustrophobic and difficult to get into at the start, because of this aforementioned intensity, but if you stick with it, it's quite intrin ... sically rewarding and definitely not a late-night waste of 90 minutes. When Perkins' 'Allan' picks up a picture and says, 'Mother,' I couldn't help but smile. What an interesting and ill-fated actor.
I had previously read about director Curtis Harrington in Barron's excellent book for cinephiles, '501 Movie Directors', though I had unfortunately not been able to find any of his films before this. He definitely has fine technique for getting across moodiness and suspense, at least in this type of ... film. Hopefully I'll eventually find and watch all of his work. 'How Awful About Allan' is a pretty decent moody, intense, creepy psychological thriller with two of my favourite thespians in that department--Anthony Perkins and Julie Harris. It's a tad claustrophobic and difficult to get into at the start, because of this aforementioned intensity, but if you stick with it, it's quite intrinsically rewarding and definitely not a late-night waste of 90 minutes. When Perkins' 'Allan' picks up a picture and says, 'Mother,' I couldn't help but smile. What an interesting and ill-fated actor.