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How Awful About Allan (1970) movie poster

Characters & Themes

How Awful About Allan (1970) Characters, Setting & Themes Explained

Release, runtime and language
1970 · 74 mins · English
JustWatch #11,543 1
Directed by
Curtis Harrington
Starring
Joan Hackett, Anthony Perkins, Kent Smith, Robert H. Harris, Julie Harris, Billy Bowles

A tense psychological thriller that follows a tormented man released after an eight‑month stint in a mental hospital. He returns to live with his sister, only to discover a mysterious boarder has moved in. As unsettling events unfold, he begins to suspect the newcomer may be plotting his murder.

On this page (8)
  1. 1 Where to watch
  2. 2 Characters explained (11)
  3. 3 Where & when it takes place
  4. 4 Themes & meaning (3)
  5. 5 Character & meaning questions
  6. 6 Movie threads
  7. 7 Movies like How Awful About Allan
  8. 8 Every angle

Where to watch

Where to Watch How Awful About Allan (1970)

Where can you watch How Awful About Allan? Stream, rent or buy it in the US, including on Artiflix, Cultpix and FlixFling: current JustWatch availability with up-to-date prices.

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11 main characters · contains spoilers

How Awful About Allan Characters Explained: Who Is Who

The main characters of How Awful About Allan (1970), heroes and villains: what drives them, how they change over the course of the story and what each of them reveals about the film's bigger ideas.

  • Allan Colleigh (Anthony Perkins)

    A man returning from a mental hospital after a fire that killed his father and scarred his sister. He struggles with psychosomatic blindness, whispers, and nightmares that blur reality, and his paranoia intensifies as he questions whether threats are real or imagined.

    • 🧠 Psychological
    • 🫥 Suspenseful
    • 🕵️‍♂️ Paranoid
  • Olive (Joan Hackett)

    Allan's fiancée who tries to reconnect and assist him, encouraging him to face the mysterious lodger. She is supportive and perceptive, serving as a bridge to the outside world and the truth she senses.

    • 💑 Romantic
    • 🕵️‍♀️ Investigative
    • 🗣️ Communicative
  • Katherine (Julie Harris)

    Allan's sister who bears a scar from the fire and appears protective yet evasive. She harbors a dangerous secret and manipulates circumstances to influence Allan's fate.

    • 🚪 Secretive
    • 🩹 Scarred
    • 🗝️ Manipulative
  • Eric (Trent Dolan)

    Katherine's ex-boyfriend whose croaky whispering voice becomes a source of fear for Allan. He is connected to the lodger and speaks with a distinctive, hidden menace.

    • 🗣️ Whispered
    • 🧭 Mysterious
    • 🧊 Cold
  • Dr. Ellins (Robert H. Harris)

    The psychiatrist figure associated with Allan's care, representing the medical route to coping with his condition and the tension around treatment.

    • 🧑‍⚕️ Doctor
    • 🧠 Psychiatry
    • 🕰️ Therapy
  • Raymond (Kent Smith)

    A figure tied to the family history and the house, anchoring the domestic drama and the legacy of the father’s influence.

    • 🧭 Familial
    • 🧪 Academic
    • 🕰️ Heritage
  • Harold Dennis (Billy Bowles)

    An odd lodger with a throat injury who can only speak in a whisper, contributing to Allan's sense of danger and the film's eerie atmosphere.

    • 👤 Whisperer
    • 🏚️ Lodger
    • 🗝️ Secretive
  • Dr. Ames (Bill Erwin)

    Another physician in Allan's circle, providing additional medical context to his care and the narrative's tension around treatment.

    • 🩺 Doctor
    • 🧠 Psychology
    • 🕰️ Therapy
  • Inmate (Molly Dodd)

    A character encountered within the mental hospital setting, representing the institution's pressure and the darker aspects of confinement.

    • 🚪 Prison
    • 🔒 Confinement
    • 🧑‍⚕️ Care
  • Allan - Child (Kenneth Lawrence)

    A younger version of Allan that hints at childhood punishment and the roots of his trauma.

    • 🧒 Childhood
    • 🪶 Memory
    • 🕯️ Trauma
  • Katherine - Child (Jeannette Howe)

    A younger Katherine that reflects the family dynamics and foreshadows her adult actions and the secrets she keeps.

    • 🧒 Childhood
    • 🪶 Memory
    • 🕯️ Trauma

Last updated: October 04, 2025 at 19:29

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Setting

Where and When Does How Awful About Allan Take Place?

The setting of How Awful About Allan (1970): the year and time period, the places and locations, and how they shape the characters, the mood and the tension of the story.

Time period

Early 1970s

The events take place in a contemporary setting relative to the film's release, with a domestic atmosphere that reflects the era's attitudes toward trauma and mental health. The fire and its aftermath anchor the narrative in a recent past, influencing the characters' perceptions and fears. The story shifts between the home, hospital, and occasional outings, all within a present-day timeframe.

Location

Home, Mental Hospital, University Library, Town

The story mostly unfolds in a family home where Allan returns after months in a mental hospital. Key scenes also occur in a university library and in town during a tense car trip, highlighting the contrast between domestic space and public life. The hospital setting provides the framework for Allan's treatment and psychological struggle.

  • 🏠 Home
  • 🏥 Hospital
  • 📚 University Library
  • 🏙️ Town

Last updated: October 04, 2025 at 19:29

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3 major themes

How Awful About Allan Meaning: Themes & Message Explained

What is How Awful About Allan (1970) really about? The emotional, social and philosophical themes the film keeps returning to, its symbolism and the message beneath the surface.

  • Psychosis

    Allan's psychosomatic blindness and whispered voices blur the line between reality and illusion. Trauma reshapes his perception, making the world feel dangerous and deceptive. The narrative relies on unreliable perception to sustain tension and suspicion. Viewers are kept uncertain about what is real versus what the mind conjures.

  • Family Secrets

    A buried history—fire, scars, and an implied murder—drives the family drama. Katherine's actions and the branding of guilt reveal how secrets fester when truth is suppressed. The siblings' loyalties and rivalries push Allan toward discovery or self-doubt. The plot hinges on revelations that upend perceived loyalties.

  • Truth vs. Deception

    Whispers, recordings, and memories create shifting realities that challenge what characters believe. Allan's tape recorder becomes a focal point for suspicion and misinterpretation. Katherine's concealed motives and disguise demonstrate how appearances can mask dangerous truths. The theme underscores fragile trust within the family and home.

Last updated: October 04, 2025 at 19:29

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Character & theme questions

How Awful About Allan Characters & Meaning: Your Questions Answered

The questions people ask about How Awful About Allan (1970): who the characters really are, their relationships, what the symbols mean, where it takes place and what the movie is really about. Each answer contains spoilers.

Q1

Where does the story mostly take place?

The story unfolds primarily in the family home where Allan returns after his stay in a mental hospital. Key scenes also occur in a university library and during a tense car trip into town, highlighting the contrast between the domestic space and the outside world.

  • family home
  • setting
  • location
  • house
Q2

When is the movie set?

The film is set in the early 1970s, reflecting a contemporary era relative to its release. The setting captures the period's attitudes toward trauma and mental health, with the fire and its aftermath anchoring the narrative in a recent past that shapes the characters' fears and perceptions.

  • 1970s
  • time period
  • era
  • setting
Q3

What is Allan's main psychological condition?

Allan suffers from psychosomatic blindness, a physical blindness with psychological roots caused by trauma. He also hears whispers and experiences nightmares that blur the line between reality and illusion, making the world feel dangerous and deceptive.

  • blindness
  • psychosomatic
  • trauma
  • perception
  • psychosis
Q4

Who is Katherine and what is her role?

Katherine is Allan's sister who bears a scar from the fire that killed their father. She appears protective but is evasive and harbors a dangerous secret. Her actions and manipulations reveal how family secrets fester when truth is suppressed, and she influences Allan's fate throughout the story.

  • katherine
  • sister
  • secret
  • scar
  • family
Q5

Who is the mysterious boarder in the house?

The boarder is Harold Dennis, an odd lodger with a throat injury who can only speak in a whisper. His presence becomes a source of intense fear for Allan, contributing to the film's eerie atmosphere and the central mystery of whether threats are real or imagined.

  • lodger
  • boarder
  • harold dennis
  • whisper
  • mystery
Q6

What is the family tragedy that shapes the story?

A fire killed Allan's father and scarred his sister Katherine, leading to Allan's institutionalization. This buried history, fire, scars, and an implied murder, drives the family drama and forms the backbone of the film's tension about guilt, blame, and hidden truths.

  • fire
  • father death
  • scar
  • family tragedy
  • secret
Q7

What is the main theme about truth and deception?

The movie explores how whispers, recordings, and memories create shifting realities that challenge what characters believe. Katherine's concealed motives and disguise demonstrate how appearances can mask dangerous truths, underscoring fragile trust within the family and home.

  • deception
  • truth
  • secrets
  • appearances
  • mask
Q8

Who is Olive and what is her role in the story?

Olive is Allan's fiancée who tries to reconnect with him and assist his recovery. She encourages him to face the mysterious lodger and serves as a bridge to the outside world, being supportive and perceptive while sensing the truth surrounding the dangerous situation.

  • olive
  • fiancee
  • support
  • relationship
Q9

How does the 1970s setting affect the story's treatment of mental health?

The early 1970s setting reflects the era's attitudes toward trauma and mental health, with the mental hospital representing the period's approach to treatment. Allan's condition and institutionalization capture how psychological struggles were understood and handled during that time.

  • mental health
  • hospital
  • 1970s
  • trauma
  • treatment
Q10

Who is Eric and why is he significant?

Eric is Katherine's ex-boyfriend whose croaky whispering voice becomes a source of fear for Allan. He is connected to the lodger and speaks with a distinctive, hidden menace, adding to the atmosphere of suspicion and deception that pervades the household.

  • eric
  • katherine
  • whisper
  • menace
  • connection

Movie threads

More Movies Like How Awful About Allan, by Mood & Story

Curated lists built around what makes How Awful About Allan tick: the same mood, the same kind of story or the same emotional payoff. Each list explains why these movies belong together.

Psychological thrillers with unreliable narrators like How Awful About Allan

Thrillers where the protagonist's fractured perception traps you in their fear. If you liked the paranoid perspective and psychological dread of How Awful About Allan, you'll find more movies like it here. These stories use unreliable narrators to create intense, claustrophobic thrillers where the line between real danger and mental anguish is blurred, keeping viewers in a state of anxious uncertainty.

  • unreliable narrator
  • paranoid
  • claustrophobic
  • psychological
  • uneasy
  • ambiguous threat
  • Tone: tense, paranoid, unsettling
  • Pacing: slow, deliberate
Why these movies?

The story pattern: Narratives in this thread typically follow a psychologically vulnerable protagonist who perceives a threat that may or may not be real. The plot unfolds from their limited or distorted point of view, creating a deep sense of ambiguity. The central conflict is often internal as much as external, as the character battles their own mind while facing a potential external danger.

Why they belong together: Movies are grouped here because they share a core narrative device: trapping the audience within an unreliable protagonist's subjective experience. This creates a specific, intense viewing experience defined by psychological unease, constant doubt, and a feeling of being as lost and paranoid as the main character.

Slow burn thrillers where home turns sinister like How Awful About Allan

Stories where a familiar setting turns into a source of creeping terror. For viewers who enjoyed the oppressive atmosphere and domestic unease of How Awful About Allan, this section collects similar movies. These slow burn thrillers focus on a home or family setting that gradually becomes a source of fear, blending psychological horror with a tangible sense of encroaching danger within a confined space.

  • slow burn
  • domestic thriller
  • oppressive
  • sinister home
  • family secrets
  • creeping dread
  • Tone: oppressive, tense, bleak
  • Pacing: slow burn, methodical
Why these movies?

The story pattern: The narrative pattern involves a character returning to or residing in a home that becomes increasingly threatening. The threat often stems from a new presence (a person, a secret, or a past trauma resurfacing) within the household. The story builds tension not with jump scares, but with a growing, oppressive sense that the sanctuary of home has been violated, leading to an eruption of psychological or physical violence.

Why they belong together: These movies are grouped together because they master the art of slow-burning tension within a domestic context. They share a specific mood of oppressive dread, a pacing that lets fear simmer, and a central theme of the home as a psychological battleground, making the familiar feel deeply unfamiliar and dangerous.

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Every angle

How Awful About Allan (1970) Explained: Plot, Timeline & Characters

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