Tension (1949)

User Rating:

7.2/10   

Director:

John Berry

Writers:

Allen Rivkin (story) and
John D. Klorer (story)

Release Date:

11 January 1950 (USA)

Genre:

Crime | Drama | Film-Noir | Romance

Tagline:

The hard-hitting story of a man with a plan...REVENGE!

Plot:

A meek pharmacist creates an alternate identity under which he plans to murder the bullying liquor salesman who has become his wife's lover.

Plot Keywords:

Murder | Lover | Manager | Neighbor | Killer

Cast

Richard Basehart	...	Warren Quimby / Paul Sothern
Audrey Totter	...	Mrs. Claire Quimby
Cyd Charisse	...	Mary Chandler
Barry Sullivan	...	Police Lt. Collier Bonnabel
Lloyd Gough	...	Barney Deager
Tom D'Andrea	...	Freddie, Coast to Coast Counter Man
William Conrad	...	Police Lt. Edgar 'Blackie' Gonsales
Tito Renaldo	...	Narco, Deager's Valet

Runtime:

95 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.37 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono (Western Electric Sound System)

Certification:

Australia:PG | USA:Approved | Finland:K-16 | Sweden:15

Filming Locations:

Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM)

Trivia:

When Richard Basehart's character of Quimby decides to create another identity for himself, he gets the idea for the name Sothern when he sees a movie fan magazine with Ann Sothern on the cover. "Tension" producer Robert Sisk was then in the process of prepping Shadow on the Wall (1950) to star Miss Sothern in the last film of her long-term MGM contract.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Cyd Charisse accidentally snaps a picture of Richard Baseheart as "Paul Sothern", it is day time. However, the resulting picture she hands over to the missing persons bureau was obviously taken at night.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Police Lt. Collier Bonnabel: I'm Collier Bonnabel. I'm a cop. I'm a Lieutenant Detective in, uh, Homicide. That's a fancy name for murder.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Tension: Who's Guilty Now? (2007) (V)

An intense suspenseful murder yarn

Though there are a few ridiculous elements to the story, standout performances, good direction and fine camera work make this one a winner. The epitome of a slut/bitch is found in the character of Claire Quimby with all the blank spots filled in by what should have been an award-winning portrayal by Audrey Totter. Almost matching her is Richard Basehart as her doting husband Warren Quimby and his alter ego Paul Sothern. It's also fun to see the talented Tom D'Andrea (the beloved Gillis in "The Life of Riley") as an "I told you so" employee friend Freddie and William Conrad ("Cannon" and radio's Marshal Dillon)as Police Lt. Edgar 'Blackie' Gonsales. Both add a degree of humor and lightness needed for a movie filled with tension.

Take away the sappy Clark Kent glasses incognito and the not only unorthodox but also highly unethical, maybe downright illegal even in 1950, method used by Police Lt. Collier Bonnabel (Barry Sullivan) to trap Claire Quimby and you have a truly intense suspenseful murder flick in the film noir tradition.