Fleapit

Last summer the BBC, in conjunction with the UK Film Council, celebrated a "Summer of British Film. For its part the BBC ran a seven-week series of documentaries on BBC2 entitled "British Film Forever" and screened its own selection of top films from the last of the 'Silents' to modern times. Several of these were a rare opportunity for the serious film devotee to see films that have been neglected or were underrated in their day. Also, the Film Council came up with its list of seven top films, BBC viewers with their list and the veteran BBC film critic Barry Norman with yet another list. So take your pick or Google "Best British Films" to find many more lists. As it was summer I taped several of those aired and have recently been watching them in the dark winter evenings. One of the best was "Obsession", truly a little gem. Mistakenly, I thought that this was a Hitchcock film when I was watching it but I was not disappointed as it lived up to my expectations being as good as many a Hitchcock work. No wonder, its pedigree was excellent, director Edward Dmytryk gave us the film noir masterpiece "Farewell my Lovely" aka "Murder my Sweet" in 1944, with Dick Powell. Although its author Alec Coppel is relatively obscure he wrote Vertigo and several hour long Hitchcock TV programmes. Born in Australia he became a US citizen but died in London.

The film opens in a corner of the Liberal Club in London; quickly we see Dr. Clive Riordan (Robert Newton) divert his gaze to a pocket of his overcoat hanging close by; instinctively we know he has a gun hidden there. A deft touch by Edward Dmytryk. Riordan goes home and lies in wait for the return of his wife Storm (Sally Gray) and lover, Bill Kronin (Phil Brown). After the confrontation Bill just disappears but in reality is being held captive by Riordan in a derelict house on a WWII bomb-site. Scotland Yard, in the form of Superintendent Finsbury (Naunton Wayne), is called in, ostensibly to find Mrs. Riordan's lost dog, Monty. Wayne gives a clever performance with an impish sense of humour that blends in well with the general tenor of the film, which mainly occupies itself with Newton tormenting his victim over several months leading towards the planned ultimate disposal of the corpse in a bath of acid. A slip of the tongue by Riordan however leads to his unmasking. The film ends as we see Storm leaving for a long cruise with her newest piece of nookie.

Some have complained that the film is too long but it is just this kind of long drawn out teasing of the audience that characterised Hitchcock; Dmytryk does equally successfully here. The film has an extremely well written dialogue with the occasional slightly humorous repartee.

Robert Newton was a talented British actor best remembered for his portrayal of Long John Silver in Treasure Island. Under Dmytryk's direction Robert Newton is superb. Sadly alcohol got the better of him and he died prematurely aged 50 of a heart attack.

Sally Gray was a popular star of the 30s and 40s, her best known film being Dangerous Moonlight with its Warsaw Concerto theme. Here she gives an excellent performance as the errant wife. She looks extremely smart and over dresses slightly with her wide brimmed hat so that she automatically attracts the attention of men without overtly inviting advances. She has married well, her husband is a leading psychiatrist with a practice in Harley Street and at the top of his profession with a very substantial income; they live in a luxurious house with servants, yet she seems to be the type who indulges in one petty affair after another and risking everything by killing off the goose that has laid her golden egg for her. She does not seem to have children but dotes on her pet poodle 'Monty' and goes to bridge parties. Perhaps they could not have a child of their own so she hoped to have someone else's child which her husband would have to accept for the sake of his career. It is an intriguing situation. The film, an excellent example of the suspense genre, is more such an exercise with a minimal plot rather than a full-blown story. It is implausible that a man in Riordan's position would hardly risk his career to murder his wife's lover. Remember, this film was made in 1948 when divorce was still a disgrace and the death penalty had not been repealed. It would have been a question of suffering in silence but one can't help feeling sorry for the two of them.