The Hidden Room

A wonderful, tight drama that begins with a British gentleman (Robert Newton) turning up unexpectedly to surprise his wife (Sally Gray) and her American lover (Phil Brown). Angered by her string of infidelities, he's planned the perfect revenge, but I won't describe the plot further. I loved the intelligent, British dialogue put side by side with a truly dark crime. The performances are fine, and director Edward Dmytryk creates a nice noir feeling. The detective played by Naunton Wayne is a forerunner of Columbo, turning up to ask 'one more question' with a veneer of innocence, but flashing his understanding and unnerving the culprit. A hidden gem.

Robert Newton is a Doctor and a gentleman. But even he can be pushed too far from his manipulative cheating wife, Storm. Sally Gray gives a devastatingly perfect performance as Storm. Her callow suitor-du-jour, an American sailor named Bill, doesn't have the faintest idea of the peril he's in for when he dates her. Newton's character has nothing in particular against Bill. In fact, he rather likes him. He just happens to be the straw that broke the camel's back.

It's all played out in a single hidden room that no one knows Newton owns, and the psychological effects the situation has on its three principal is explored to its utmost. If you enjoy film noir, and taut character studies, this is the movie for you. Don't miss the dark-humoured twist ending!

Robert Newton gives a restrained and powerful performance as a cuckolded doctor exacting revenge on his high-spirited wife by abducting her young American lover, then keeping her guessing as to where he is, and whether he is still alive. Sally Gray is nothing short of brilliant as the wife. And, Naughton Wayne is magnificent as the dogged police inspector. Obsession combines brilliantly chiseled characterisations with an extremely intelligent and literate screenplay. Keep it on tape, because no one gets all the nuances the first time he or she watches it, but it's all put together so brilliantly the repeat viewings become a glorious pleasure.

Obsession (AKA: The Hidden Room) is directed by Edward Dmytryk and adapted to screenplay by Alec Coppel from his own book and play. It stars Robert Newton, Phil Brown, Sally Gray and Naunton Wayne. Music is by Nino Rota and cinematography by C.M. Pennington-Richards.

Finally having had enough of his wife's affair with a young lover, Dr. Clive Riordan (Newton) plots a devilish scheme of kidnap and murder...

The motive that drives the plot of Obsession is simple in the extreme, this is out and out a revenge for infidelity, but the presentation by Dmytryk is superbly crafty in that Hitchcockian way. The doctor is a most elegant and calm man, he has the perfect murder in mind for his wife's lover (Brown) and he, being a purveyor of psychological smarts, is going to enjoy the luxury of methodically taunting his prey over a period of time.

With the man ingeniously incarcerated down in a bombed out abode, and subjected to daily visits from the doctor, Dr. Clive is then seen going about his normal routines. Exchanging brandy sips with cultural chatter in the gentleman's club, swatting away the attentions of his increasingly fraught wife (Gray), and of course dealing with the close attentions of Scotland Yard; here in the form of Naunton Wayne's astute Superintendent Finsbury. The "good" doctor even has plenty of time to indulge in his love of model train set construction.

The initial plot machinations are slowly paced by the recently blacklisted director, but it's a deliberate ploy since the whole complexion of the movie changes once the kidnap occurs and the police and the press become involved. The atmosphere becomes tense, and this even as captor and captive enjoy some straight backed - prim and proper - verbal exchanges. There's a meticulousness to the murder based thematics that strike a chord, the mention of Crippen and obvious nods to John George Haigh keep the film buzzing with real life serial killer atrocities.

There's a case to be made here that this is Dmytryk's best British film? Certainly his ability to build suspense without histrionics or blood letting is a masterclass in Brit thriller staging. While his directing of Newton and Wayne, both of whom are excellent, is also worthy of a pat on the back. Visually it's straight black and white photography, except for the odd time we are out on the wet cobbled streets and the gaslights ooze the ethereal. But although there's some debate about if it deserves film noir status, I personally feel it's the sort of crime/thriller mounted with enough skill to make it worth seeking out by the film noir loving crowd.

Some of the support turns are stiff, but mercifully not film harming, while you do have to accept that the locale of the crime is hardly water tight and most likely would have been found with ease. But minor itches be damned, this is cunning, crafty and a British chiller of some worth. 8/10

Since I first saw Obsession 30 years ago it's remained one of my favourite post War British thrillers – although directed by and starring Americans it's nowhere near noir but a very British take on a calculated attempt at a perfect murder. The idea shown is almost as foolproof and institutionally British as dismembered body parts in suitcases checked into railway station lockers. Some cogent concise acting, scripting, production and black & white photography all go to make an engrossing 93 minutes UK TV running time.

Erudite doctor Robert Newton plays a husband who gets terminally jealous of his philandering wife Sally Gray and decides to bump off her current lover Phil Brown in an ingenious and supposedly undetectable manner. Bomb ravaged London comes into play here with the kidnapped lover temporarily installed in a derelict hidden room underneath a broken brick wasteland to await his gruesome but quick death at manic Newton's hands. And it is Newton's picture - although Naunton Wayne gives him a run for his money later on - his perfect diction matching his impassive body language (maybe exhausted after all the gurning he'd just done in Oliver Twist) and creating a perfectly clinical analysis of the mind of a hopeful murderer. Monty sure was a lucky dog to have escaped a bath though!

A great little film with plenty for you to think about and an atmosphere all of its own when the British made good British films with only the British in mind – even with Yank input!