Twenty years removed from Alice Barlow's murder by a thief looking for her jewels, newlyweds Paul and Bella Mallen move into the very house where the crime was committed. Retired detective B.G. Rough, who worked on the Barlow case, is still in the area and grows suspicious of Paul, who he feels bears a striking resemblance to one of Barlow's relatives. Rough must find the truth before the killer can strike again and reclaim his bounty.
Acting
Anton Walbrook's smile hides pure venom.
Direction
Dickinson makes gas lamps feel actively malevolent.
Production
Victorian claustrophobia built from real shadows.
Director
Thorold Dickinson
Anton Walbrook
Paul Mallen (as Anton Wahlbrook)
Diana Wynyard
Bella Mallen
Frank Pettingell
B.G. Rough
Cathleen Cordell
Nancy the Parlour Maid
Robert Newton
Ullswater
Jimmy Hanley
Cobb
Minnie Rayner
Elizabeth
Aubrey Dexter
House Agent
Mary Hinton
Lady Winterbourne
Jack Barty
Chairman of Music Hall
Kathleen Harrison
Bit Role
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
MGM tried to buy and destroy all prints to suppress competition with their 1944 Ingrid Bergman remake — they failed.
This is literally where 'gaslighting' entered popular vocabulary; the term didn't exist before this play and its adaptations.
GB
