Tension (1949)

Good concept, poorly executed.

It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional

Fun premise, good actors, bad writing. This film seemed to have potential at the beginning but it quickly devolves into a trite action film. Ultimately it's very boring.

what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

There's nothing too special here, but it's an entertaining enough noir. Audrey Totter plays a materialistic woman cheating on her pharmacist husband (Richard Basehart), a nice guy who is crushed when she leaves him for another man. He assumes an alter ego based on a brand new technology (contact lenses!), and plots revenge. Along the way he meets a nice girl (Cyd Charisse), who puts a delightful wrinkle in his plans. Totter has a wonderfully strong edge in this film, scheming and openly defiant of her husband. The scene where she appears with eyes flashing in the mirror is probably the film's strongest. Unfortunately the rest of the cast don't keep up with her. Barry Sullivan is reasonably strong as the detective, as is William Conrad as his sidekick, but he lacks a little in the 'tough guy' department. I liked seeing Charisse who has such a fresh face and is so likeable, but I'm not sure how deep her character or performance was. Other than Totter, there's just something missing, some grit or hardness, which prevents this from being a very good or great film. Also, quite a bit of the rest of the plot is telegraphed, and without a lot of subtlety. As for direction, it's decent, and the shots in the pharmacy and the street outside of it are good, as there is so much detail in the entire frame during these scenes. There was also something that was interesting about seeing a more obscure, 'B' film noir, which never committed any major errors, even if it didn't hit any homeruns.

Copyright 16 November 1949 by Loew's Inc. A Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Picture. New York opening at the Rialto: 11 January 1950. U.S. release: 25 November 1949. U.K. release: 15 May 1950. Australian release: 6 July 1950. 95 minutes. Cut to 91 minutes in Australia. SYNOPSIS: Meek pharmacist determines to murder his wife's lover. He adopts a complex plan which backfires when...COMMENT: Although the plot is full of holes, none are apparent while the action is actually unwinding, thanks to the charismatic skills of the principals (even the normally no-personality Cyd Charisse seems very appealing here) and the sensitive direction of John Berry. Atmospheric photography and realistic sets also help. Audrey Totter has one of her best roles, but fans of Barry Sullivan are in for a mighty disappointment. Although he narrates the movie, he doesn't come on stage until halfway through, and even then he's often shaded by William Conrad's attention-grabbing impersonation of his slobby offsider.OTHER VIEWS: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer made only a few dozen or so forays into the non-escapist world of film noir. Fortunately, this grippingly atmospheric yet once-neglected little gem has found a secure niche in the repertoire of Turner Classic Movies. The cast is exceptionally engrossing, though it could be argued that Barry Sullivan delivers a somewhat too arch performance as a smug, string-pulling and none-too-likable detective. On the other hand, secure portrayals by Richard Basehart and Audrey Totter brilliantly prop up a somewhat insecure script. If Quimby "looked so nice in his uniform", how come he allows himself to be beaten up by an obviously-out-of-condition Deager? And surely Mary would have made inquiries from Sothern's "employer" before reporting him to Missing Persons. And even though the action takes place in a large city (presumably Los Angeles), surely Quimby's plan is full of risk. After all, he's right there on display at the prescription counter day and night. He doesn't even take the trouble to dye his hair. And most important of all, surely a smart, street-wise cookie like Claire Quimby could see right through Bonnabel's extremely transparent stratagem. She's not in love with the guy anyhow and yet she suddenly acts like a dope purely in order to bring the movie to an isn't-romance-wonderful fade-out. And what's her motive anyway? In an early dramatic role, Cyd Charisse comes across as exceptionally appealing. The way she handles the confrontation scene is so convincing, she manages to paper over the script's gaping holes. Also helping out in this regard, slot in Berry's tautly moody, stark, no-frills direction. The movie's unusually realistic sets (by M-G-M gloss-is-everything standards) are pinpointed to perfection by ace cameraman Harry Stradling.

John Berry directed this underrated film noir that stars Richard Basehart as milquetoast husband Warren Quimby, who works as a pharmacist where his bored, philandering and beautiful wife(played by Audrey Totter) hangs out and carries on right under his nose! She then decides to leave him for another man named Barney(played by Lloyd Gough). Warren later confronts them on a beach, but is easily pushed aside by Barney, inspiring him to enact an elaborate scheme of revenge and murder by creating a new identity for himself, but someone murders Barney before he gets the chance, though of course he still gets the blame by police... Fine thriller with solid acting and direction, with a protagonist who is most sympathetic, and a leading lady who is not!

Actually, it lacks a lot of things besides tension. The main thing it lacks is a believable storyline and asks the audience to take too much for granted. Spotting the plot holes is like playing 'Whack-a-mole'; as soon as you find one along comes another.The cast does the best they can with the thankless script. Richard Basehart plays the cuckolded husband and Barry Sullivan is the investigating detective, assisted by William Conrad. Cyd Charisse and Tom D'Andrea are also on hand in supporting roles.Starting a new paragraph for Audrey Totter, who plays Baseharts' slutty wife, a role she was born to play and which she played often in her career. Here she is at her rottenest (or best, depending on your viewpoint) and is a treat to watch, but even she can't save this one.This picture could have been so much better but was not written very well. As critic Kenneth Tynan put it, you have to suspend your disbelief as you watch a movie - can't do it with "Tension".