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To me, this movie is perfection.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

This film is so odd that it becomes very interesting quickly. It would have been better to have a bit more backstory on Richard (the guy living in the crawlspace). The middle aged couple, the Graves, are without child and when they, found the young man Mrs. Graves' motherly side wanted to keep him, nurture him while her husband was reluctant at first but decided to be a father to him and try to reintroduce into society. Things are okay but weird for awhile but when Richard had trouble at a store with some ill-mannered young punks things start to get ugly. The Graves start having mixed emotions over Richard: they want to love him as Richard wants but they are also afraid of Richard.A pretty darn good thriller - the film gets intense and scary. I found this one to be a worthwhile movie.8/10

I had nearly given up all hope to ever see this particular "Crawlspace"! When you're actively searching for this title, you can encounter a couple of interesting cult movies, but not easily this 1972 made-for-TV movie. Now that I did finally get my eager little hands on a decent copy, I can safely state that it's another delightfully curious and out-of-the-ordinary TV-gem! On one hand it's a typical 70s TV-thriller, meaning that it is short and low- budgeted and not featuring any special effects, but on the other hand this also means that the plot is uniquely bizarre and that the atmosphere is moody and unsettling throughout. Additionally, it also means that it stars several adequate actors and actresses and that the story, although highly implausible and far-fetched, remains stuck in your mind and keeps you contemplating. Albert and Alice form a lovable elderly couple living in a remote countryside mansion. One day, they discover that the 20-something homeless and extremely introvert Richard has moved into the crawlspace underneath their house uninvited. So Albert and Alice react like any normally functioning person would react… They feed him milk & cookies, knit winter sweaters for him and invite him over to the family Christmas diner! They adopt and welcome Richard like the son they always wanted but never had, in fact. Problems arise when Richard turns out to be a bit of an aggressive sociopath and runs into a dispute with the local grocery boy. Based on a novel that I haven't read, the intriguing basic concept and character developments are undoubtedly the strongest points of this film. These, along with the excellent performances of Arthur Kennedy and Theresa Wright, make "Crawlspace" one of the finest TV-thrillers I have seen in my life. The pacing is slow but intense, the music and ambiance are continuously eerie and the inevitable climax is almost emotional. Matthew Coles also gives a good performance as the arrogant small-town bully, while Tom Happer (as the crawlspace resident) hits the exact right tone being simultaneously pathetic and menacing. Believe you me, this thriller is way better than director John Newland's widely acclaimed but vastly overrated "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark".

Like the reviewer above me, I saw this when I was young and it returns to my thoughts often...it has a certain haunting quality to it that is hard to define. Powerful and evocative and yet very understated. There is an air of reconciliation for the generations here, after the turbulent and impassioned separation of the 1960s, just passed.No performances stand out in my mind...Matthew Cowles is believable as the small-town heavy, and Arthur Kennedy turns in a memorable performance in the twilight of his career.It's the eerie and unexplained presence of the young man...almost like a lost child, how the old couple summons him up from the crawlspace and just accept him as their surrogate child, that's always stuck with me and made this movie return to my thoughts again and again, after all of these years.

Albert Graves (splendidly played by Arthur Kennedy) and his wife Alice (a top-drawer performance by Teresa Wright) are a nice middle-aged couple who discover young, homeless, troubled Richard Atley (a frightfully edgy portrayal by Tom Happer) residing in a crawlspace in the basement of their house. They adopt Richard as if he was the son they never had. Things work out for a spell, but eventually turn sour when Richard's volatile nature asserts itself with tragic results. Director John Newland (who also gave us the terrifically freaky "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark"), working from an intriguing script by Ernest Kinoy, does an able and effective job of creating and maintaining an absorbingly mysterious tone. Jerry Goldsmith's beautifully classy and eerie score adds substantially to the tension. Urs Furrer's slick, pretty cinematography likewise hits the spot. Kennedy and Wright do sterling work in the leads; they receive bang-up support from Happer, Eugene Roche as folksy, responsible sheriff Emil Birge, Dan Morgan as doddery old shopkeeper Harlow, and Matthew Cowles as local troublemaker Dave Freeman. This offbeat and enjoyable little winner would make a perfect double bill with the similarly solid and unnerving "Bad Ronald."