I find it odd I wasn’t weirded out by Robert Newton keeping Phil Brown chained for weeks on end in an abandoned building. What I did find unnerving was the white line on the floor he had put down in advance, making the farthest Brown can reach. Not exactly sure why, but I was reminded of Silence of the Lambs and the setup in Buffalo Bill’s basement. Also like that film, a captive will manage to get hold of their captor’s dog.
But this film is the 1949 UK thriller Obsession. You know there are many directions it can’t possibly go in which a film today could, so there’s a definite limit to how gruesome this might get. On the other hand, this being a British picture, it wouldn’t be as handicapped as one made in America, what with the rigorous production code at the time.
If this film had been made in the US, I would be surprised if it had the second bathtub in the room where Newton keeps Brown chained. Each day, when Newton brings sandwiches and thermos of martinis to his captive. He also dons thick rubber gloves and empties the contents of a hot water bottle into that tub. With all the time Brown has to ponder his situation, I’m amazed he is so slow to realize that tub is how his captor intends to dispose of his remains.
The offense Brown has committed was to be the lover of Newton’s wife, played by Sally Gray. The lovers may assert it was a harmless little flirtation, except Newton is finally taking extreme measures after such a long line of them. “I decided what to do with the next one even before you met my wife.”
Newton caught them about to make time in his house when they thought he was away on a trip. They claim to have been at a concert, which Newton says was an impossibility, as it had suddenly been cancelled at the last minute. They fall for his bluff, with Gray not thinking to check his story until after the cat is out of the bag.
I thought it was interesting how coolly Gray exits the room and heads to her bedroom after Newton displays a gun and announces his intention to kill Brown. But the husband is not going to kill him then and there, hence the room he prepared in that abandoned building.
And that is where Newton takes Brown at gunpoint. Even if one is under duress, a lesson all should take away from this film is to never go to a second location with somebody who says they are going to kill you. Better to die there and then instead of taking your chances on getting away later. Plus, the odds are in your favor the person could be bluffing.
Not that Newton is bluffing this time. For a while, I thought his intention was simply to drive the other man crazy, as the captivity goes on for weeks. Brown repeatedly expresses his doubts he will be murdered, despite constant reassurances from Newton that is the end goal: “Yes, I’m going to kill you.” Brown’s response: “Probably by boring me to death.”
On the case is Naunton Wayne as a slyly mischievous imp of a Scotland Yard supervisor. His crafty performance is a joy to watch, and not that different from what Peter Falk would eventually do on Columbo. Like an episode of that show, Newton will make the mistake of underestimating the inspector. He also unwisely snaps at Wayne in some moments as when the man drops in on Newton while he’s preoccupied with his large model train set-up. You know, when you are a model railroad enthusiast, you’re kinda begging to be a cuckold.
Obsession is an extremely solid, though not great, thriller. It is twisty without being excessively convoluted, clever without calling attention to itself. There are good performances all around, especially that of the dog I mentioned in the opening paragraph. That is one smart pooch and, in a humorous touch, he will even have his own circle on the floor marking the extent of his range.
Dir: Edward Dmytryk
Starring Robert Newton, Phil Brown, Sally Gray, Naunton Wayne
Watched on Powerhouse/Indicator blu-ray (all-region)