Drama, based on a true story
115 minutes
USA 2018
Director: Bille August
Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYZ2iksMQ-Y
Summary:
55 Steps is a compassionate portrait of Elinor Riese (1943-1991), a psychiatric patient who, despite heavy sedation and isolation in a padded cell at a California hospital, manages to call a patient advocate and request a lawyer after being forcibly medicated. When attorney Collette Hughes arrives, she is warned that Elinor is volatile, but insists on meeting her privately and earns her trust by listening.
A close bond develops between the two women as they challenge the forced use of neuroleptics, exposing their severe side effects and the risks of repeated dosing. The film underscores the lawyers’ fight to uphold patients’ rights, showing how heavy medication can suppress communication and autonomy.
Elinor learned of her legal victory shortly before her death at 47, caused by organ damage linked to the drugs she was prescribed despite documented risks. 55 Steps marks a key legal milestone, affirming the right of emergency psychiatric patients to participate in decisions about their own treatment.