In case you haven’t been paying attention to what’s been going on over at Relativity Media, I’ll give you the short version—they’re scrambling to release their slate of films while in the midst of bankruptcy, now replacing Mike Flanagan’s Before I Wake with the D.J. Caruso-directed The Disappointments Room, which was originally going to see a release in November. We first caught wind of the Kate Beckinsale-led thriller two years ago, so it’s nice to finally see it come to light despite the unfortunate circumstances. Penned by Stoker’s Wentworth Miller, The Disappointments Room looks pretty great and the trailer itself doesn’t reveal too much, leaving the intrigue of its true story to really take hold.
And speaking of this one being based on true events, I did some digging and I haven’t been able to find a single story that directly points towards inspiring The Disappointments Room. What I did find, however, is pretty goddamn horrifying. Some believe that during the 1800-1900s, a “disappointment room” was a small room in the attic of a home where mentally ill family members were kept to keep them from being seen by the public. From what I could tell, though, there’s no solid evidence that leans on the real-world practice of a room such as this, so take that with a grain of salt. Hell, I don’t even know if Caruso’s film is based on one of these rumored “disappointment rooms”, but I thought it was worth sharing, so there you go!
The Disappointments Room is out in theaters on September 9th.
The psychological thriller follows a woman who moves into a new house with her 5-year-old son only to discover a secret room within the attic where unimaginable horrors are accidentally unlocked.
It stars Kate Beckinsale, Lucas Till, Gerald McRaney, Mel Raido, Michael Landes, and Ella Jones.
themissingreel.com 
The film looks great, with Beckinsale as the quintessential haunted heroine–is she mad or is there something supernatural going on? The film hints that she has a history of mental illness. Such the default role for women in horror, but often a way of creating characters of real depth and complexity (more so than the butchered female victim or damsel in distress). I really like Mike Flanagan’s films, but Before I Wake was a major disappointment. I’ll be really curious to know what you think of it! Kudos to your research and the industry information–that kind of attention to detail makes you such a great horror critic!
Thanks! I also dig Flanagan’s stuff so I’m bummed to hear you didn’t like Before I Wake—I do plan on reviewing it, so be on the lookout for that!
The title/label “Disappointments Room” is incredibly sad, but sounds like a great premise for a film.
As for Relativity Media – get out!! I had not heard they were going under. They’ve done some interesting films. I’m kind of shocked to hear that.
Yeah it’s very surprising to see them go through financial trouble. Who would have thought!
Just saw this last night, and woof. IF it is any indication of the kinds of films Relativity has been releasing as of late, I can understand the bankruptcy. This movie was bankrupt on any originality. On top of that I couldn’t believe how terribly it was handled. None of it made any sense. One of the worst movies I have seen this year I have to say. And that kills me as I quite like Kate Beckinsale and the guy who plays the husband was really likable too
Yeah, man, Relativity dumping this one with practically no marketing was a sure sign that it was going to be shit. I’ll definitely be skipping it, especially now!