"Asylum" DVD Review

There aren't any bonus features at all - not even a director's commentary track - so if you caught "Asylum" in its limited theatrical run, there's no need to pick up the DVD. However if you're looking for a darker tale of obsession and love and you missed it on the big screen, then "Asylum" might be just the ticket.

Natasha Richardson stars as Stella, the wife of a career-obsessed superintendent of a psychiatric hospital in "Asylum," a disturbing tale of jealousy and lust.

Stella's husband Max's (Hugh Bonneville) affection for his wife is sporadic and for the most part goes unexpressed. Seeking a distraction from her dreary and repetitive life, Stella develops an attraction for a smolderingly handsome inmate, Edgar Stark (Marton Csokas).

Edgar was committed to the asylum for brutally butchering his wife and is under the care of Dr Peter Cleave (Ian McKellen). Dr Cleave has worked at the maximum-security psychiatric hospital for decades and was passed over for promotion when Stella's husband was hired to take charge of the facility. Needless to say, he's not a supporter of either Stella or her husband. As Stella and Edgar's illicit relationship grows, Dr Cleave works like a puppetmaster, manipulating the two into taking drastic measures.

The adult drama earned an R rating for strong sexuality, some violence and brief language, and definitely deserves the R for strong sexuality.