The Burning Bed

DIRECTOR: Robert Greenwald

NOTEABLE APPEARANCES: Farah Fawcett

BASED ON A BOOK BY: Faith McNulty

DATE OF RELEASE: 1984

RUNNING TIME: 95 min

COUNTRY: USA

LANGUAGE: English

RATING: 15

KEY THEMES/ ISSUES: Domestic violence, homelessness, women's rights

Based on an actual case, The Burning Bed was one of the most important telefilms ever to deal with women’s rights and spouse abuse.

After suffering a beating, a woman pours gasoline on the bed in which her former husband sleeps, ignites it, and kills him. She was then acquitted of a murder charge using a defense of temporary insanity. The Burning Bed was broadcast by NBC on October 8, 1984, and it received a large number of Emmy Award nominations. The Burning Bed was named as Best Feature at the first International Television Movie Festival.

Date

1984