Ida Lupino and Robert Ryan are two of my favorite performers from the 1940s and 1950s. They're well matched, and this movie has none of the cloying nature of their "On Dangerous Ground."
I watched the beginning twice and still am not sure what Ryan did or didn't do before taking it on the lam and ending up in the town where Lupino is a war widow. He is a very troubled person, though. He's paranoid, insecure, and has occasional violent impulses.
The suspense in this essentially two-character drama builds. It is especially tense when the repairman comes to fix the phones Ryan has pulled out of the wall. Lupino asks if he will give Ryan a ride home -- not that we have any idea where his home is, nor, clearly does Ryan (though he initially acquiesces.)
Unbeknownst to Lupino, Ryan has left the repair van and returned to her house. But she asks the repairman to lock her in for her safety. Uh-oh! But then Ryan leaves of his own accord and she is safe in her home. The viewers when this was in theaters, surely on the edge of their seats at this point, were left to put on their coats and drive home, scratching their heads. We, looking at the video or watching it on TV, do the same today.
I watched the beginning twice and still am not sure what Ryan did or didn't do before taking it on the lam and ending up in the town where Lupino is a war widow. He is a very troubled person, though. He's paranoid, insecure, and has occasional violent impulses.
The suspense in this essentially two-character drama builds. It is especially tense when the repairman comes to fix the phones Ryan has pulled out of the wall. Lupino asks if he will give Ryan a ride home -- not that we have any idea where his home is, nor, clearly does Ryan (though he initially acquiesces.)
Unbeknownst to Lupino, Ryan has left the repair van and returned to her house. But she asks the repairman to lock her in for her safety. Uh-oh! But then Ryan leaves of his own accord and she is safe in her home. The viewers when this was in theaters, surely on the edge of their seats at this point, were left to put on their coats and drive home, scratching their heads. We, looking at the video or watching it on TV, do the same today.