MesmeroWatch list, 0 saved

Movie
Poster for The Mad Women's Ball

The Mad Women's Ball

2021 · 122 min

A somber, slow-building period drama that traps you inside institutional cruelty and quiet defiance, with an eerie supernatural thread.

Directed by
Mélanie Laurent
Genres
Thriller, Drama, History
Starring
Lou de Laâge, Mélanie Laurent, Benjamin Voisin
Overview
A woman who is unfairly institutionalized at a Paris asylum plots to escape with the help of one of its nurses. Based on the novel 'Le bal des folles' by Victoria Mas.

Your rating is saved. See your suggestions, or find titles like this one below.

Rate it, and Mesmero finds titles that feel like it. You do not need an account.

Search YouTube for a trailer

Stream in the UK
  • Amazon Prime Video
More options Data from JustWatch
Directed by
Mélanie Laurent
Genres
Thriller, Drama, History
Starring
Lou de Laâge, Mélanie Laurent, Benjamin Voisin
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • melancholicstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • earneststrength 2 of 3
Pacing
measured, 2 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • isolation
  • power
  • gender
  • madness
  • freedom
Places
  • hospital
  • big city
Era
period
Audience
adult
Form
  • serialised
Content intensity
  • Gore mild
  • Language mild
  • Violence mild
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action2
Horror4
Humour1
Realism7
Romance2
Tension6
Darkness7
Complexity5
Emotional weight7

More like this

Titles like The Mad Women's Ball

Movie

Party of Fools

2024

A somber, atmospheric period drama that unfolds slowly inside an asylum, mixing quiet dread with moments of solidarity and defiance.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and madness

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • madness
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
122 min
Details
Party of FoolsHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Insidious: Out of the Further

2026

A tense, grief-soaked haunting that keeps you braced for the next jump and the next door.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
106 min
Details
Insidious: Out of the FurtherHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Augustine

2012

A slow, quietly intense period drama that feels clinical yet sensual, exploring power and desire through a restrained, unsettling gaze.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and power

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • power
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
102 min
Details
AugustineHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

The Terror: Devil in Silver

2026

A slow, suffocating descent into institutional dread, where every corridor and face feels like a quiet threat.

Dark, tense · about isolation and power

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • isolation
  • power
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Seasons
1
Details
The Terror: Devil in SilverHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

A Streetcar Named Desire

1951

A claustrophobic, emotionally raw descent into delusion and cruelty, powered by towering performances and a sweaty, oppressive atmosphere.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and madness

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • madness
Pacing
measured
Attention
demanding
Runtime
122 min
Details
A Streetcar Named DesireHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Elephant Man

1980

A somber, compassionate plunge into Victorian cruelty and dignity, shot in stark black-and-white, that aches with quiet humanity and surreal unease.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Runtime
124 min
Details
The Elephant ManHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

House of Pleasures

2011

A slow, immersive plunge into a fading world of women, where beauty and cruelty sit side by side and the atmosphere lingers long after.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and power

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • power
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
126 min
Details
House of PleasuresHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

Free Fall

2016

A heavy, claustrophobic psychological ordeal that keeps you uneasy as a woman's fragile mind is tested by suspicion and institutional cruelty.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and madness

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • madness
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
engaged
Seasons
1
Details
Free FallHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

Escaping the Madhouse: The Nellie Bly Story

2019

A grim, claustrophobic institutional drama that unsettles more than it thrills, leaning on dread and injustice rather than scares.

Dark, tense · about isolation and madness

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • isolation
  • madness
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
88 min
Details
Escaping the Madhouse: The Nellie Bly StoryHidden from your suggestions.
TV series

Bad Apples

2021

A hushed, uneasy period drama that settles over you like institutional quiet, slowly tightening its grip as trust erodes.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation and power

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
  • power
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Seasons
1
Details
Bad ApplesHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Magdalene Sisters

2002

A harrowing, slow-burning watch that immerses you in institutional cruelty and quiet resilience, leaving a heavy emotional residue.

Dark, tense · about isolation and power

Via
  • dark
  • tense
  • isolation
  • power
Pacing
measured
Attention
engaged
Runtime
119 min
Details
The Magdalene SistersHidden from your suggestions.
Movie

The Others

2001

A hushed, shadowed house where every creak and candle feels like a warning, pulling you slowly toward a chilling, sorrowful revelation.

Dark, melancholic · about isolation

Via
  • dark
  • melancholic
  • isolation
Pacing
slow-burn
Attention
demanding
Runtime
101 min
Details
The OthersHidden from your suggestions.

Where to watch in the UK

Stream
  • Amazon Prime Video
Free
  • Rakuten TV

Streaming data from JustWatch.All options on TMDB

Details

Genres
thriller, drama, history
Directed by
Mélanie Laurent
Written by
Mélanie Laurent
Starring
Lou de Laâge, Mélanie Laurent, Benjamin Voisin, Emmanuelle Bercot, Cédric Kahn, Lomane de Dietrich, Christophe Montenez, Coralie Russier
Cinematography
Nicolas Karakatsanis
Runtime
122 min
Country
France
Languages
French

TMDBIMDbLetterboxdWikipediaWikidata